Fallen Redemption
by hermionegarner
Summary: The war is over. The Dark Lord won. Hermione is in Azkaban, sentenced to be a prisoner there for the rest of her life. That is until a familiar face brings shocking news, and a rather unorthodox proposition.
1. Azkaban

**Disclaimer: **All characters belong to J.K. Rowling, as does the world of Harry Potter.

**A/N: **Story written from the first person POV of Hermione Granger.

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**Chapter One: Azkaban **

I shut my eyes and breathed in the salty ocean air. Funny how that scent still brought with it a small sense of comfort. It reminded me of Brighton, our family vacations when I was little—

How long had it been since I'd seen them? Since I'd seen anyone?

Cold wind rushed by my cell, and I shut my eyes tighter. I could feel them tugging at my mind, searching for something to feed off of. They were unsuccessful, of course—they'd devoured my last happy thought years ago.

I was out of hope.

When the assault was over, I opened my eyes. The words I'd carved in stone so long ago seemed to scream at me in the dim light.

_LONG LIVE POTTER._

Sadness didn't overwhelm me. Tears didn't threaten to fall.

I was just numb.

My thoughts wandered and, as always, landed on Ron. Where was he? Had they sent him to this forsaken island as well, or had his fate been kinder? Against my better judgment, I let myself imagine him and Harry, together, in some other place, living after death. For a moment, I felt a spark of what I used to know as happiness.

Almost as quickly, the dementors snuffed it out.

Dull footsteps echoed along the halls. I looked at my bars with vague interest. It seemed early for my daily meal, but time wasn't a relevant measurement in my life anymore. I'd be here till the day I died.

Hopefully that day would come sooner than later.

I closed my eyes again as the footsteps drew closer. They stopped, and I waited for the sound of my plate sliding on the ground. Instead, I heard a voice.

"Hello, Granger."

My eyes snapped open. I stared at the man standing outside my cell. He'd aged, but for the most part he was still the same Draco Malfoy I went to Hogwarts with.

He took a step towards the bars. "Surprised to see me?"

"The last time I did, your father was torturing me," I said in a small voice. I hadn't spoken for at least three years.

"I hope you can accept my apologies for that."

I pursed my lips and returned to staring at the wall.

"He's dead, you know," he continued after a moment.

"Well I hope you're not expecting my condolences."

"Far from it. Rather your congratulations. I've inherited his entire estate."

"Believe it or not, I wouldn't congratulate you if you were about to become the king of England."

Out of the corner of my eye I glimpsed him smile. "Same old Granger."

"What are you doing here, Malfoy? I'm not supposed to have visitors."

"Then isn't this a welcome surprise?"

"I'd take the dementors over you any day."

He faked a wince. "Ouch."

I struggled to my feet, but didn't approach him. "What do you want?"

"I have a proposition for you."

"Not interested."

"You haven't even heard what I have to say."

"Nothing you could say could interest me."

"Is it too much to ask for you to give me a chance?"

"A _chance_?" I stomped toward the bars. "Dumbledore gave you a chance, we gave you a chance—you had plenty of _chances, _and you still chose to become one of the Dark Lord's minions."

"He's called the Emperor now."

"Like I care," I spat. "'Emperor' or no, you still chose the wrong side."

"You're in there, and I'm out here. Most would say I chose the _right _side."

"Anyone who says that is fooling themselves, and you are too if you think I'm going to entertain this conversation for one more minute."

I turned away. Malfoy reached in through the bars and grabbed my arm.

"I'm pretty sure this is one conversation you do want to finish."

"And what on _earth _would make you think that?"

He slowly released my arm, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a note. He slipped it through the bars. I stared at it a minute before taking it, crumbling it up, and throwing it back in his face. He caught it.

"I'm not playing games, Malfoy. If you're not walking away in five seconds, I'll scream, and every dementor on this level will come running."

"Poor choice of words, seeing as they don't run."

"One."

He shook his head, that disgusting smirk still on his face. He started unfolding the note.

"Two."

Once the note was unfolded, he smoothed it out. I felt my rage boiling.

"_Three_."

Suddenly, he held the note up against the bars. My lips froze forming the word "four" as I stared at what was written on the paper.

_Potter's alive._

"I'm listening," I breathed.

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**A/N: **Please read and review! I always look forward to feedback!

And for those of you reading my other stories, don't worry, I haven't given up on them :)


	2. Escape

**Chapter Two: Escape**

Malfoy's smile widened. "I thought that would get your attention."

"This better not be a joke," I said in a shaky voice. In fact, my whole body was shaking.

He eyed me with an expression I'd never seen on his face before—concern? "Sit down before you collapse."

Despite my pride, I did as told. He tucked the note safely back into his pocket before sitting on his heels.

"I realize you must have a lot of questions, but this is neither the time nor the place to discuss them." He reached into a different pocket and withdrew a vial. I recognized the contents immediately.

"Polyjuice isn't going to open this cell door."

"But it will enable you to walk out once the door is open."

He reached into yet another pocket and pulled out a ring of keys. I raised my eyebrows.

"Time for explanations later, Granger." He handed me the vial.

I eyed it for a moment before looking back at him. None of this seemed real. My instincts told me not to trust him, that I was being played. But even if I was, what was the worst thing that could happen? If I died, I'd owe Malfoy a thank you. If I was brought back here, I'd be no worse off than I already was. Besides, I had no doubt I could play Malfoy at his own game.

Resolved, I pulled the cork out of the vial and downed the liquid. Malfoy's smile returned, wider than ever. As the potion began to take effect, he stood up and fiddled with the lock. I forced myself to breathe slowly, let my body transform into someone else's.

The transformation settled as I heard the lock click, and my cell door swung open. My heart jumped. Malfoy extended his hand to me, and I allowed him to help me to my feet.

"Here, put these on." He handed me a bag he'd been carrying, then turned around. The robes were elegant and obviously very expensive. They were also tiny-for a moment I thought he'd turned me into a child.

Once I finished dressing, he took my arm and led me down the halls. Though my body had been transformed, I hadn't regained any of my strength. I stumbled worse than ever as we travelled down what seemed like endless halls and staircases. We walked in silence. Any minute I expected to be caught, to be returned to my cell.

By the time we reached the ground floor, I was struggling to remain upright. We entered the main hall, and I gazed at the countless fireplaces on the walls, each with two guards in front of it. It had been years since I'd seen this place, since I'd seen anything but the stones in my cell, but it seemed larger than before. No doubt the new "Emperor" had expanded the prison.

A man in a servant's uniform bowed deeply as we approached. Malfoy motioned for him to stand.

"Miss Greengrass isn't feeling well," he said. "I'm afraid the dementors have had a stronger effect on her than I anticipated. Take her home, and escort her to her room to rest. Make sure no one disturbs her. I will be along shortly."

"Yes, Master Malfoy," the man said with another bow.

Malfoy kissed my forehead before handing me over to the servant. I tried to hide my surprise. He walked away, and I allowed myself to be led toward one of the fireplaces.

The guards barely blinked as we walked past. The man supporting me cleared his throat as he threw a small handful of Floo powder at our feet. Green flames sprung from the hearth, engulfing my freezing body in warmth. I almost gasped at the sensation.

"Malfoy Manor," the man stated.

I shut my eyes. The sensation of travelling through the Floo network again after so long was nauseating enough, I didn't need to watch grate after grate appear and disappear in front of me. Only when we finally stopped spinning did I open my eyes again.

I froze. In front of me was an elaborate drawing room, a room that was all too familiar. I looked up. The chandelier had been restored to its former glory, but that wasn't how I remembered it. I remembered it shattered on the ground.

"Is everything all right, Miss Greengrass?"

I glanced at the servant and nodded. He continued forward, and I forced myself to put one foot in front of the other. Echoes of the past, of my screams, filled my mind. That day, being tortured by Bellatrix Lestrange, had easily been the worst day of my life.

Until the Battle at Hogwarts, of course.

We walked through the drawing room, into the entrance hall, and up the grand staircase. Through a maze of hallways, we arrived at a pair of double doors. The servant released my arm and opened one of the doors, bowing deeply.

I opened my mouth to say thank you, but thought better of it—I'd still sound like Hermione Granger, after all, not "Miss Greengrass." Instead, I gave him a curt nod before entering the room.

The door closed behind me. Now that I no longer had adrenaline rushing through my system, my legs couldn't hold my weight any more. I managed to make it to the bed before I collapsed. I let out a sigh and closed my eyes. I hadn't been on a bed, or even a chair, since I was eighteen.

How old was I now?

My mind was filled with questions. What happened to my friends? How did Malfoy orchestrate my escape? _Why _did he do it?

Was Harry really alive?

Slowly, I felt my consciousness slipping away. I struggled to stay awake, but it was no use. Exhaustion overcame me, and I drifted into a troubled sleep.

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**A/N: **Thanks so much for so many follows and reviews already! I'm glad you're all intrigued, and I look forward to your reviews on this chapter as well!

I've had a couple people ask if I can state the pairing for this fic. My simple answer is that this particular fanfiction isn't really about a romantic relationship. That being said, I cannot confirm or deny that there will be romance, or who will or will not be involved in said hypothetical romance. I will say that if you've read any of my fics before, you know that I'm a diehard R/Hr shipper.

Again, hope you enjoyed this chapter, and looking forward to your reviews!


	3. Astoria

**Chapter Three: Astoria**

"Good morning, Darling."

Someone was running their fingers through my hair. I forced my eyes open to see Malfoy leaning over me. I quickly sat up.

"What are you—?"

He cut me off with a kiss. When he pulled back I stared at him, speechless.

"You've been asleep for almost twenty-four hours," he said nonchalantly, as if he hadn't just kissed one of his greatest enemies. "We were all starting to worry. Your mother and father are downstairs."

He shot me a knowing look.

"Are they?" I said quietly.

He nodded, seemingly both in answer to my question and as a sign for me to continue.

"Well, they shouldn't have come. I'm sure I'll be back to perfect health in no time."

My voice—it _did _sound different.

But if I'd been asleep for almost a full day—

"And I have every intention of making sure you are." He stood up from the bed and crossed the room, retrieving a breakfast tray from the desk. "Chocolate éclairs, chocolate milk, a chocolate crepe, and a few candy bars thrown in for good measure." He set the tray on my lap.

I glanced at the food, then back to him. "Doesn't seem like the healthiest meal."

"For someone who just got back from Azkaban, it is. Especially the milk—why don't you try it?"

Cautiously, I picked up the cup and put it to my lips. As I drank, warmth seemed to spread through my entire body, reinvigorating my muscles. The more I drank, the more energy I regained.

"Do you like it? I made it myself, just for you."

"Thank you," I said quietly.

A small smile appeared on his lips. "Don't mention it, my love. Now, I'll leave you in peace to finish your meal, but first I need to put this back where it belongs."

He reached into his pocket and withdrew a diamond ring. I raised my eyebrows as he took my left hand and slipped it onto my ring finger.

"I spoke to Mother, and she approves wholeheartedly. Now we can finally move forward."

"Finally," I muttered.

"When you've finished, just ring the bell and someone will take care of the tray and help you dress. I'll see you downstairs."

He kissed my forehead, turned, and paused at the door just as he was about to leave.

"I love you, Astoria," he said with a smile, then walked out.

I stared at the now closed door, frozen.

_What in the world was that?_

Still slightly catatonic, I picked up an éclair and popped it into my mouth. For a moment, I forgot everything else that was going on and simply relished the taste. Before I knew it, all of the food on my tray was gone, including the candy bars.

Last night I'd slept in a real bed, and now I was eating chocolate for breakfast.

_I can't believe this is real._

But what _was _this? I climbed out of the bed, surprised to find it was no longer a struggle to stand, and pulled on the nearby rope. As I waited for a servant to enter, I wandered around the room, stopping in front of a large mirror.

The person staring back at me wasn't Hermione Granger. She had straight brown hair that fell just past her shoulders and a long face. Her eyes were blue and narrow, and her lips thin. She was shorter than I was, but not by much. She was thin, with hardly any muscle. Apparently, her name was Astoria Greengrass. And apparently she was engaged to Draco Malfoy.

But why did I still look like her? The Polyjuice potion should have worn off by now.

There was a knock on the door, and I jumped.

"Come in."

The door opened to reveal a maid. She curtsied deeply as she entered.

"You rang, Miss?"

"Yes. I—er—finished my meal and would like help—um—dressing for the day."

"Of course, Miss."

The young lady crossed the room and opened a door. I followed her and entered a huge walk-in closet. The entire right side of the room was covered in designer jeans, shirts, and dresses, as well as the most elaborate robes I'd ever seen—clothes so expensive I'd be nervous to wear them at all. The left side of the closet, however, was filled with upscale men's clothing. I raised my eyebrows again. Not only was Astoria engaged to Malfoy, she was living with him.

But where was she?

Still slightly in shock, I chose a shirt/skirt combination that didn't look too flashy and dismissed the maid. Once I was dressed, I looked at myself—or rather Astoria—in the mirror once again. I took a very deep breath and walked out of the room.

It took me a few minutes to find my way out of the maze of halls and to the grand staircase. I looked around the entryway. I had no idea where anything was in this mansion, least of all where to find Malfoy.

After a short round of eenie-meenie-minie-mo, I turned to the right and walked into what seemed to be a study. A blonde woman immediately stood from the couch and hurried toward me.

"Astoria, Dear! So glad to see you up and about!"

She embraced me. I returned the hug, desperately trying to appear natural.

"Your father and I have been so worried," she said as she pulled away.

"There was no need. As you can see, I'm perfectly fine." I flashed a smile.

Over her shoulder a man stepped into view, and I felt a surge of panic. He was one of the death eaters who'd grabbed me, pulled me away from Ron—

"We're just happy to see our little angel out of bed," he said in his gruff voice. I planted my feet in the ground, resisting the urge to run away.

"It's good to see you too, Father," I managed to say.

"Is that Stori?" A young woman with blonde hair bounded around the corner into the room. I narrowed my eyes slightly.

"Daphne?"

She laughed. "Surprised to see me?"

"A little," I said as she drew me into a hug. Daphne Greengrass—now I realized why that last name sounded familiar. We'd been in the same year at Hogwarts. Not that we'd socialized much—she was a Slytherin, after all.

"Well, you shouldn't be." She released me, a huge smile on her face. "You didn't think I'd miss your engagement party, did you?"

I forced a small smile. "I guess not."

"We're all so looking forward to the celebration," Lady Greengrass added. "The Emperor sends his congratulations, and says he'll do his best to attend."

I stared at her a moment. "I'm speechless," I muttered. It was true.

There was an awkward moment of silence before I cleared my throat. "Um, I'm looking for Ma—for Draco. Have any of you seen him?"

"I believe he's across the hall in the dining room." Daphne piped up. "We were all about to sit down for lunch, but I don't expect you're hungry after dining upstairs."

"On the contrary, I'm famished. Shall we?"

Daphne smiled at me again and turned. I let her lead the way, so I wouldn't appear lost. When we entered the dining room, the table was already set with an array of delicious appetizers. I felt my mouth start to water.

_Control yourself, Hermione. You may not have had a decent meal in years, but Astoria certainly has._

Malfoy sat at the head of the table. He smiled and stood as we entered. I walked over to him, and he pulled me close for a short kiss.

"I see you found your family. Will you be joining us?"

"Of course."

We all sat. Malfoy squeezed my hand under the table. I searched his face for answers, but found none. I wanted to scream at him, to demand an explanation for all of this, but I was smarter than that.

As we all nibbled at the appetizers (me with much self-restraint), a servant entered with a copy of the _Daily Prophet_ on a plate. Lady Greengrass took it without a word and began scanning the articles. After a few minutes, she let out a small gasp.

"What is it, Mother?" Daphne asked.

She shook her head. "You remember Hermione Granger, don't you Dear?"

"Of course, she was the girl always hanging around Potter."

"Must we discuss such people in my house?" Draco said, disdain in his voice. "That mudblood gave me enough grief while at Hogwarts. I thought she was safely locked up in Azkaban."

He caught my eye and winked.

"Well, she was. Still is, technically. She died in her cell last night."

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**A/N: **Hope you're still intrigued! I promise more answers in the next chapter! Looking forward to your reviews :)


	4. Death

**Chapter Four: Death**

"Died?" I blurted out before I could stop myself. "How?"

"They're not sure, but I doubt they'll launch a real investigation. It's not like there's anyone around to miss her."

"She probably found out what happened to her parents, and the grief killed her," Daphne said mockingly.

Everyone chuckled. It was the most horrible sound. It took every ounce of my self-control to keep my face blank. Malfoy squeezed my hand again, but he wasn't helping. I wanted to scream at him just as much as everyone else, if not more.

Lord Greengrass stood and raised a glass. "Here's to the last of the 'Golden Trio' finally meeting her end. Long live the Emperor!"

My heart stopped. Somehow I managed to lift my glass into the air and drink with everyone else, all the while dying inside. _The last of the Golden Trio..._

_Ron..._

Malfoy tried to squeeze my hand again. I pulled it away, struggling to control my heavy breathing.

"Dear, are you all right?"

I glanced up at Lady Greengrass. "Yes, I'm fine, I just—I guess I'm still shaken from yesterday. Excuse me."

I stood. Malfoy stood with me and took my arm.

"Let's go for a walk, shall we? Maybe the fresh air will help."

Feeling numb, I nodded. We were almost to the front door when I heard someone following us.

"Astoria, may I have a quick word?" Lord Greengrass said.

After a moment of hesitation, I nodded. "I'll meet you outside," I said weakly to Malfoy. He kissed me again before walking out the large front doors.

Lord Greengrass took a few steps closer to me. I resisted the urge to step back.

"Well? What have you found out?" he said in a low voice

I quickly racked my brain for an answer, some way to talk myself out of this.

"Nothing new," I said.

Lord Greengrass let out a sound that resembled a growl. "Well, you better find something soon. The Emperor is not a patient man."

I tried to hide the bolt of fear that ran through my system. "I understand."

He nodded. Taking that as a cue that the conversation was over, I exited the house, forcing myself to walk instead of run. Malfoy was waiting just outside the doors. As soon as they closed behind me, I let out a deep breath.

"You've got some explaining to do."

"I know. I should have done more to keep your parents away, Darling, I'm sorry."

My blood was boiling. "You know very well that's not—"

He shot me a warning look. "Why don't we go for a walk in the gardens? That usually helps clear your head, doesn't it?"

He extended his arm to me. I clenched my teeth and took it. With every step we took, I grew more and more anxious, and more and more angry. If I didn't get some answers soon, I was going to explode.

After we'd been walking for about five minutes, he suddenly pushed me against a nearby tree. But I didn't hit the bark—I staggered into a sparsely furnished, dimly lit room. In front of me, the wall seemed to turn to liquid and Malfoy walked through it.

"All right, Granger—let it out."

"What in _Merlin's name _have you gotten me into?" I screamed. "The only reason I'm here is because of your note, and you've done nothing to convince me it wasn't a sham! And if Harry is alive, why would you even want to help him? And how did you get the keys to my cell, and get the Polyjuice past the guards? Oh, and while we're on the subject, why didn't the potion wear off, why do I sound like her, and where is your _real _fiancé?"

He raised a hand. "Let's start with that last one, shall we? The real Astoria Greengrass is currently being buried at sea by the wardens of Azkaban."

"_What?_"

"It's quite simple, really. If you'd merely escaped from Azkaban, then everyone who was at the prison that day would be a suspect in the investigation. But if you were found dead, there would be a celebration."

I choked on my words. "You killed her, and put her in my place."

"It wasn't in cold blood, I assure you. Her father tasked her with investigating me for the Emperor—you see, when I told you my father was dead, I left out the important detail that he was killed by the Emperor because he was suspected of treason. My mother's in Azkaban now, which is our excuse for being there yesterday. I thought I could handle Astoria, but she dug a little too deep. I had to eliminate the liability."

"You murdered her!"

He took a few steps forward. "If I hadn't killed her, she would have exposed me, and the fact that Potter's been alive all this time, a secret my family has gone to great lengths to keep. And don't forget _you _would still be in that hell," he hissed. "If you disapprove of my methods, maybe I should have left you there."

I clenched my teeth. "Maybe you should have."

He scowled and turned away from me. "I knew this was a mistake. You don't have what it takes to beat him."

"If you mean I'm not a murdering scoundrel like yourself, you're right."

"This is _war_!" he exclaimed, whirling around. "There _will _be casualties, and better them than us! I promise you, Granger, if they find us out they will have no mercy, so we need to be merciless in return."

"What is in this for you? The Draco Malfoy I knew never did anything that wasn't out of self-interest."

"Then you never knew me very well. Everything I did was out of fear."

"And you're not afraid of 'The Emperor' now?"

"More than ever, but I'm determined to make this right. He's destroying both the wizarding world _and _the muggle world. Believe it or not, I do have a conscious."

"Right, and that's why you murdered Astoria."

"It was her or me. What about that don't you understand?"

I took a deep breath and let it out. "Fine. But if we're going to work together, from this point forward we explore other options _before_ homicide."

"Fine," he muttered resentfully. "Next question."

"How old am I?"

"Astoria's 23. Hermione's 25."

I blinked. "25?"

"Turning 26 next month."

I found a nearby chair and sat in it, putting my head between my knees. "Seven years," I muttered.

Malfoy pulled up another chair and sat next to me. "A lot has changed since the Battle at Hogwarts. The world is a much different place."

I'd learned so much just in the past hour. Something horrible had happened to my parents. Ron was dead, and probably his entire family as well. Voldemort was now trying to take control of the muggle world. The world had become such a place that my death was a _celebration_ to most of those left in it.

I collected myself, sat up, and looked him squarely in the eye.

"Tell me everything."

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**A/N: **The plot is starting to move forward! Hope you're still enjoying :) Looking forward to reading your comments!


	5. Aftermath

**Chapter Five: Aftermath**

Malfoy leaned back in his chair. "Where shall I begin my tale?"

"What happened to everyone else?" I said, keeping my voice steady. "The people that fought in the battle, I mean."

"Most of them were carted off to Azkaban, like you. Only a few are still there—Molly and Arthur Weasley, I believe. And Aberforth Dumbledore. The students that were involved—those that weren't actually close to Potter—were sent home after a few months or years, provided they swore allegiance to the Emperor."

"And those that were close to him?"

He hesitated. "That depends."

"Tell me."

"The Emperor held a round of public executions shortly after the battle," he said slowly. "As if people weren't afraid enough, he decided they needed to see first hand what happens when you cross him. He started with Longbottom."

I closed my eyes. Neville had been so brave that night. Even after Harry was dead, after Voldemort had already won, he stood up to him, in front of everyone. The fact that he'd managed to kill Nagini was nothing short of miraculous. In that moment, I believed we could still win, even without Harry.

But I was wrong.

"Who else?"

"Most of the professors. A few death eaters who he suspected of wanting to switch sides." He paused. "And Weasley."

I shut my eyes even tighter and buried my face in my hands. Just yesterday, I'd been hoping Ron was dead, free of all this pain. Now that there was a dash of hope, now that I was out of that prison, the idea of facing this world without him by my side was almost unbearable. Still, I didn't cry—I'd cried over his death hundreds of times over the past seven years. This was merely a confirmation, not a revelation.

But that didn't mean my heart wasn't breaking.

"Why didn't they kill me too?" I muttered.

"Killing Weasley was never part of the plan," Malfoy said, his voice unusually soft. "He was supposed to be in Azkaban all this time too. The Emperor decided the endless suffering that prison would bring you two was the only possible punishment for the heinous crimes you committed. He only planned Weasley's execution to try to draw his sister out of hiding."

I opened my eyes and spun to face him. "Ginny got away?"

He smirked. "She's still the world's most wanted criminal."

"Finally some good news," I sighed, letting myself crack a smile.

Malfoy's smirk faded. "That's about where any 'good news' ends, I'm afraid. 'You-Know-Who' disbanded the Ministry. That's when he started calling himself 'the Emperor.' He has a council, of sorts, but their only real job is to carry out his orders. Lord Greengrass is on that council."

"That explains what he said."

"What did he say?"

"When he pulled me aside, he asked me what I'd found out and said something about the Emperor not being a patient man."

"Like I said, he had Astoria digging up information on me. What did you tell him?"

"That there was nothing new."

"Well, excuses like that aren't going to last for long," he said snidely. "We'll need to come up with a story you can spin—one that confirms the Emperor's suspicions about me, but vaguely enough that he won't act without further information."

I frowned. "And why wouldn't I just tell them there was nothing to find?"

"Because then they'd assume, quite correctly, that you were working with me. You still need to appear like one of their agents."

"But how am I supposed to know everything Astoria knew?" I stood and began pacing. "I don't even know my way around your house!"

He laughed. "That's all right, Astoria didn't either. She just moved in last week."

"If you knew she was watching you all this time, why did you propose to her?"

"Because pushing her away would have made me look even more suspicious. Besides, the closer I got to Astoria, the closer I got to the rest of her family, and by extension the Emperor himself. Now that you're in Astoria's shoes, it'll be even easier to infiltrate his inner circle, don't you think?"

I eyed him for a moment. "So you expect me to just act like we're engaged, and marry you if necessary?"

"Well, it wouldn't technically be you. You are in Astoria's body, after all."

"That's another thing I don't understand—how can I still look like her? The effects of Polyjuice potion wear off in a matter of hours, not days. And how do I _sound _like her?"

Malfoy grinned. "You aren't the only one who's good at potions. You should only have to take your medicine once a month."

"You expect me to believe you, what, 'perfected' the Polyjuice potion?"

"I'd think all you'd need to do is look in a mirror to prove me right."

I rolled my eyes. "What, you couldn't transfer her memories to me too?"

"No, but seeing as you love reading so much I think you'll like this much better."

He reached into one of his pockets—how many did he have?—pulled out a small book, and tossed it to me. I flipped through the pages.

"Astoria's diary?"

"She's been keeping it since she was ten years old. Better get started."

I pocketed the book and folded my arms. "All right, let's say we're not caught the first time someone asks me a personal question. Is this the only place that's safe for us to talk freely?"

Malfoy nodded. "Outside of this room, I'm afraid you'll have to pretend to be my fiancé."

I narrowed my eyes. "I'm not sleeping in the same bed as you, Malfoy."

"You are if you want this to work."

"And why can't one of us sleep on the floor? Or—and I just thought of this—in another room?"

He rolled his eyes. "The Emperor is always watching. We can't take the chance of him or anyone else seeing that."

"And disappearing into a tree trunk isn't suspicious?"

"He doesn't have eyes on the garden, just ears." Malfoy stood. "Believe me, I've explored every option. This is the only way we can avoid suspicion. Now are you going to stop arguing with me or do I have to find a way of getting rid of you too?"

I sighed. "Fine, _Draco_. Now, about Harry-"

"I'll fill you in more tomorrow. For now, we better be getting back. Your parents will start to worry."

He headed toward the wall we entered from. I grabbed his arm.

"About my parents..." I trailed off.

He stared at me a moment before understanding. "Daphne's comment."

"She said the grief would kill me," I paused, "but I need to know what happened."

Malfoy hesitated. "Look, all I know for sure—all anyone knows for sure, really—is that he tracked your parents down in Australia. About a year ago he started his war with the muggles by burning two bodies and levitating them above the parliament building. Almost everyone thinks they were your parents, but no one really knows."

I took a deep breath. "If he tracked down my parents, they probably were."

He put a hand on my shoulder. "Or he's keeping them for something else. There's always a chance."

I raised one eyebrow. "Am I imagining things, or is Draco Malfoy trying to comfort me?"

His arm dropped to his side and he stepped away from me. "Better for you to think of them as alive than to blow your cover crying over them."

He spun around and walked straight through the wall. I shook my head. I wasn't going to cry over them—I didn't have any tears left—but I knew very well that if Voldemort had tracked them down, they weren't alive. All the more reason for me to go along with this charade—to avenge them.

And Ron.

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**A/N: **Still plenty of questions to be answered, and even more to come. I promise I'm not forgetting anything! Thanks so much to everyone who's reviewed so far and I'm looking forward to hearing from the rest of you :)


	6. Expecting

**Chapter Six: Expecting**

Three pairs of hands grabbed me from behind. I screamed and struggled, but my captors were too strong. Ron was being dragged in the opposite direction. He screamed my name. The door closed between us before I could call out to him.

The Death Eater's threw me to the ground, cackling. The Malfoys entered the room. Draco stood back as Lucius approached, an evil grin on his face.

"Time for us to have some fun," he snickered. "_Crucio!_"

I screamed and sat up in bed, drenched in sweat. After a moment, my breathing calmed down. _It was just a dream._

But it was more than that. It was a memory.

"What's wrong?" a groggy Malfoy mumbled.

I glanced at him. I'd forgotten we were sharing a bed now. "Nothing," I whispered. "Go back to sleep."

"You screamed."

"I had a nightmare."

He propped himself up with one arm. "What was it about?"

I eyed him curiously. I couldn't figure out if he was genuinely concerned, or if he was just playing the part of a loving fiancé in case there was anyone watching. Probably the latter.

"I was dragged away from the man I love," I said in a monotone voice.

Malfoy pulled me into his arms and kissed my neck. "Just go back to sleep. I won't let anything happen to you."

Long after he started snoring once more, I was still awake. Even if I'd wanted to sleep, I wouldn't have been able to—being in his arms was _so _uncomfortable.

_What are you doing, Hermione? Get out of here—find Ginny, figure out a plan on your own. You don't need him. Everyone thinks you're dead anyway, so it's not like they'll be looking for you._

I glanced over my shoulder at Malfoy. There was no reason for me to trust him. He'd given me no proof that Harry was alive, and I was still mostly in the dark about his plan. I had no incentive to stay here.

But I couldn't leave. Not yet. There was a small part of me holding on to the glimmer of hope, the fantasy that Harry was out there somewhere.

What I couldn't understand was why he wouldn't come for me if he was still alive, and how he'd managed to stay hidden all this time. And of course how Malfoy was involved.

I drifted off for a few hours, but soon the sun was up and so were we. Malfoy and I took turns dressing in the closet without appearing too conspicuous. As we were about to head downstairs, I paused.

"Dear, have you seen my wand?"

Malfoy smirked at me before opening the drawer in the nightstand. "It's where you always keep it, my love."

He pulled it out and handed it to me. I took a deep breath as I felt a strange sensation prick my arm. It had been so long since I'd held a wand that I wasn't used to the feeling anymore. It made me feel alive.

"Thank you, Dear," I said with a smile. Malfoy's smirk widened.

We left the room together, but soon parted ways. Malfoy went to the study, for business he said, while I went straight to the dining room. Lady Greengrass was already seated at the table, reading this morning's edition of the _Daily Prophet_. I paused when I saw a moving picture of me—the real me—on the cover.

"Anything good today?" I said casually as I sat down.

She looked up. "More information on the Granger girl's death. The Emperor decided to have a public funeral for her. It'll be broadcast on the telly this afternoon."

I stared at her. _Nothing in that sentence made sense._

"That's a surprise." I picked up a coffee mug and sipped it. "You'd think he'd be throwing a celebration, not a funeral."

"I guess we'll understand more this afternoon. The Emperor always has his reasons." She put down the paper and reached for my hand. "But I don't want to talk about that right now."

"What do you want to talk about?"

"The real reason you've been feeling so sick."

I put down the mug. "Like I said, Mum, I'm fine."

She shook her head. "We both know that's not the truth. Have you told Draco yet?"

I thought for a minute, and decided on the safest answer. "No."

"Why not? He is the father, isn't he?"

I blinked. _The father?_

_Merlin's beard._

"Look, I'll talk to him on our walk this afternoon, but I'm not even sure anymore," I said quickly. "I was a little panicked when I talked to you, and I may have rushed to conclusions—"

"You seemed pretty certain at the time."

"I know I did, but I'm not certain anymore. It may be nothing. But I promise I'll speak to him and we'll make sure."

She sighed and picked up the paper again. "You can't run away from something like this, Astoria. You have to take responsibility for your actions."

"And I will if I have to, but I doubt that's going to be necessary."

Daphne entered the room, and we fell into silence. The footman brought me something to eat, but I didn't really pay attention to what was on my plate. I was too lost in my own thoughts.

The clock seemed to tick extra slowly as I waited for noon to come. We'd told everyone we were going on a picnic together. In a sense we were, we just wouldn't be eating outside.

When we finally did meet up, Malfoy could tell I was anxious to talk. We walked straight to the tree and entered the secret room. Malfoy set down the basket.

"Food or questions first?"

"Astoria was pregnant."

Malfoy froze halfway into a chair. "What?"

"She told her mother just before you killedher."

He slowly stood up. "Well, you should head to the library. I'm sure there's a spell or something you could do to get pregnant."

"I—_excuse me_?"

"I just assumed you wouldn't be open to sleeping with me."

"I'm not impregnating myself, Malfoy!"

He shrugged. "If she already told her mother—"

"And I told her this morning that I think I was mistaken, so that's that." I shook my head at him.

"Fine, then it's all settled. Why did you feel the need to tell me this?"

"You're missing the point!" I yelled. "You not only murdered Astoria, but your unborn child as well! Doesn't that make you feel _anything_?"

"Since she must have just conceived the child, it wasn't really alive yet anyway."

"You're unbelievable," I muttered.

"I didn't know! And excuse me for not sending Astoria in for a check-up before taking her out of the picture."

I narrowed my eyes and folded my arms. "Look, I've had about all I can take with you. This absurd plan, always more questions than answers—frankly, I don't trust you. If you don't give me some proof—some _concrete proof_—that Harry survived that night, then I am walking out of here and never coming back."

He narrowed his eyes as well. After a minute of staring each other down, he walked to the opposite end of the room and pushed on a brick on the wall. A stone in the middle of the floor slid to the side and a small basin rose up from the ground. I raised one eyebrow.

"A pensieve? How do I know you haven't tampered with your memory?"

"It's not my memory, it's my mother's." He produced a vial from shelf at the base of the pensieve. "And I think it will be enough to convince you."

He uncorked the vial and poured the memory into the basin. I watched as Harry's face appeared in the liquid. Something caught in my throat.

Malfoy took my hand, and we both leaned forward.

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**A/N: **I'm looking forward to writing the next chapter, and I hope you're looking forward to reading it :) Please review!


	7. Pensieve

**Disclaimer: **For the majority of this chapter, the dialogue and the details of what happened come directly from _Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows_, and thus belong to J.K. Rowling. In the interest of keeping as true to the books as possible, I have incorporated her words into this part of my story. The description is written differently, as I don't wish to plagiarize, and Hermione and Malfoy do have an ongoing conversation as they go through the memory. I have kept the majority of details from the book the same, with the exception that Harry was not awake and aware of what was going on.

Hope you enjoy!

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**Chapter Seven: Pensieve**

Malfoy and I landed on our feet in the middle of a clearing, in the forbidden forest. There was a fire, illuminating a crowd of Death Eaters and two giants. Voldemort was standing, silent, Nagini floating behind him in a cage, protected. I caught site of Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy at the edge of the crowd. They both looked terrified.

"What is this?" I asked.

Malfoy didn't answer. There was a rustling in the woods to my left, and I turned. Dolohov entered the clearing.

"No sign of him, my Lord."

Suddenly, I realized where I was. I took a step back.

"No, I don't want to see this—"

"It's important," Malfoy said as he grabbed my hand.

In the deafening silence, Bellatrix Lestrange spoke up. "My Lord—"

Voldemort raised a hand, and she fell silent.

"I thought he would come," he said, disappointment in his voice. "I expected him to come. I was, it seems...mistaken."

"You weren't."

My breath caught in my throat. Harry walked out of the shadows, head up high. The Death Eaters and giants all cried out, laughed, cheered, but I didn't hear any of the noise. I just watched, horrified, as Harry walked closer and closer to the Dark Lord.

"HARRY! NO!"

I spun around. Hagrid was tied to a tree, struggling against his bonds. "NO! NO! HARRY, WHAT'RE YEH—?"

"QUIET!" yelled one of the Death Eaters, and Hagrid's mouth was forced shut.

The entire clearing was silent. I stared back and forth between Harry and Voldemort, my heart sinking with every passing second.

"Harry Potter," Voldemort hissed. "The boy who lived."

He raised his wand. Harry stared back at him, strong, like a statue. I wanted to look away, but couldn't.

_"AVADA KADAVRA!_"

I let out a small cry and covered my mouth as Harry crumbled to the ground. Malfoy held tightly to my hand.

"He didn't even try to fight," I breathed. "He just—stood there."

"Look," Malfoy said softly, nodding toward Voldemort.

I reluctantly tore my eyes away from Harry to see that the Dark Lord had fallen to the ground as well. Bellatrix was leaning over him, whispering "my Lord" over and over again. He appeared to be unconscious.

It didn't last long. Soon he was getting to his feet, and the concerned Death Eaters stepped away from him.

"My Lord, let me—" Bellatrix said, reaching out to him.

"I do not require assistance," Voldemort snapped. His red eyes locked on Harry's body. "The boy...is he dead?"

No one answered. I felt the tension in the clearing, the unspoken fear. No one wanted to step forward, to examine Harry's body.

"You." Voldemort pointed his wand at Narcissa, and she let out a small cry. "Examine him. Tell me whether he is dead."

Malfoy's mother cautiously approached Harry. She pulled back an eyelid, felt underneath his shirt. She paused for a moment before sitting up.

"He is dead!"

The clearing burst into cheers. Sparks shot out of wands into the air, people stomped on the ground. My lip quivered as I stared at Harry's lifeless body.

"Why are you showing me this?" I asked Malfoy over the noise. "Why are you torturing me?"

"It's what happens in front of Hogwarts that's really important."

"I know what happened in front of Hogwarts! I was there!"

"Just be patient," he said, gripping my hand tighter. "You can always look away."

But I couldn't look away. Voldemort yelled something to the crowd, something I didn't understand, and pointed his wand once more at Harry.

"_Crucio_!"

I watched in horror as Harry's body was thrown into the air over and over again, limp, helpless. His glasses fell to the ground. The Death Eaters jeered and laughed. Voldemort waved his wand and Nagini's cage disappeared. She draped herself around his neck.

"Now," said Voldemort, "we go to the castle, and show them what has become of their hero. Who shall drag the body? No—Wait—"

He pointed his wand at Hagrid and forced him to step forward. "You carry him. He will be nice and visible in your arms, will he not? Pick up your little friend, Hagrid. And the glasses—put on the glasses—he must be recognizable."

My heart broke as Hagrid picked up Harry, his body shaking with sobs. The Death Eaters began to move in a procession toward the castle. Malfoy and I followed them. I did my best to ignore everything the Death Eaters around me were saying. We passed the centaurs, and Hagrid yelled something. Soon we reached the edge of the forest, and Voldemort commanded the army to stop. Dementors surrounded them, and I shut my eyes, wanting to escape this nightmare.

The Dark Lord amplified his voice. I remembered his speech almost word for word. He told us Harry was dead, told us that the only way to save ourselves and our families was to join him. I remembered the terror I felt at that moment, holding on to Ron for dear life.

The army moved forward a few yards, closer to the castle. McGonagall was the first to emerge, and she screamed. Bellatrix and a few of the other Death Eaters laughed horribly.

I watched as Ron, Ginny, and I ran out of the castle. I closed my eyes tightly as I listened to our screams.

"No!"

"_No!_"

"Harry! HARRY!"

Ron grabbed Ginny and held her back. I remember thinking how this couldn't be true, this couldn't be how it all was going to end.

He couldn't be gone.

The crowd of people behind us burst into yells and cries until Voldemort screamed "SILENCE!" and cast a spell over all of us. He made Hagrid set Harry on the ground, at his feet. My blood boiled.

"You see? Harry Potter is dead! Do you understand now, deluded ones? He was nothing, ever, but a boy who relied on others to sacrifice themselves for him!"

"He beat you!" yelled Ron, breaking the spell. Hearing his voice, seeing his bravery, my heart soared and broke at the same time.

Once more the crowd shouted and screamed, but we were soon silenced again.

"He was killed while trying to sneak out of the castle grounds, killed while trying to save himself—"

Neville broke free of the crowd and charged at Voldemort. With a flick of his wrist, the Dark Lord disarmed him, and he fell to the ground with a grunt. I watched as Voldemort approached him, taunted him. Neville stood firmly, seemingly unafraid.

"You will make a very valuable Death Eater," Voldemort was saying. "We need your kind, Neville Longbottom."

"I'll join you when hell freezes over," Neville yelled. "Dumbledore's Army!"

The crowd cheered. I'd felt so much pride for Neville in that moment, and hope.

But it was short lived. Voldemort summoned the Sorting Hat, forced it on Neville's head, and set it aflame. I watched helpless as he screamed, burning, unable to move.

Suddenly, a crowd of people emerged from the forest. Grawp ran out from behind the castle. The centaurs rode out, sending arrows flying at the Death Eaters. That moment had been complete chaos.

I looked back at Neville just in time to see him draw the sword of Gryffindor and slay Nagini. Ron, Ginny and I were running toward him, but we were too late—a curse came shooting out of Voldemort's wand and knocked him to the ground, unconscious. Ginny tried to keep running, tried to reach Harry, but Ron and I put ourselves between her and Voldemort. He waved his wand, and all three of us flew backward, landing hard on the ground. We all struggled to our feet, but Death Eaters were surrounding us, overpowering us—

"Over here, Granger."

I tore myself away from the scene and rejoined Malfoy by Harry's body. His mother was searching his pockets. After a moment she found the invisibility cloak and pulled it out. Her eyes seemed to shine a little brighter.

"Narcissa, what are you doing?"

Lucius hurried over to her. Everyone else was headed to the castle, caught up in the battle.

Narcissa looked up. "He's alive, Lucius. He survived, again."

"That's not possible," Lucius breathed.

"Apparently, it is."

"You said he was dead!" her husband exclaimed. "You lied to the Dark Lord!"

"It was the only way to save his life!"

"And whywould we do that?"

"Our son could be _dead _in there, and for what?" she hissed. "Any promises he made to us about power and glory are empty. I know you're just as terrified as I am, and the fear will never stop unless we _do _something."

Lucius looked around, his fear even more prominent on his face. He hesitated a moment.

"Cover him with the cloak," he whispered. "We don't have much time."

I watched as Harry disappeared. The Malfoys walked away. I moved follow them, but something was pulling me out of the memory. I tried to fight it, tried to stay in the moment, but it was no use. Soon I was back in that dimly lit room, standing over the pensieve.

"What happened?" I demanded, rounding on Malfoy. "What did they do with him?"

"They found another body and put it in his place. Using Polyjuice potion, of course. Then they smuggled Potter out of the country."

"_Why_? Your father was the one who was torturing me after I was captured! He was never on our side!"

"It's like my mother said," Malfoy folded his arms, "in the end, they had nothing to gain from this war. In fact, they'd lost almost everything. My mother realized that keeping Harry alive was our only chance at ever beating the Emperor, and my father went along with it to protect her."

"Where is he now?" I breathed. "Why didn't he come for me?"

Malfoy uncrossed his arms and sat. "Because he's in a coma. He has been since that night."

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**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed this chapter. It answered some questions, brought up some new ones, but we're finally figuring out Draco's agenda little by little. Looking forward to your reviews, and please don't be mad at me for including so much from the original book! (And yes, I cried all over again rereading those two chapters :P )


	8. Plotting

**Chapter Eight: Plotting**

"What?"

"He's been in a coma for the past seven years," Malfoy repeated. "Don't worry, I have the best doctors and nurses money can buy looking after him."

"Where is he? I want to see him!"

"You will. We'll have to come up with an excuse, though. He is out of the country."

"Where?"

"The less you know right now the better, just in case someone probes your mind." He paused. "You do know occlumency, don't you?"

I hesitated. "Yes, and no. I taught myself some in the years leading up to the battle, but never really had any practice."

"Then you'll have to start practicing." He stood. "The Emperor might be coming to the engagement party tomorrow night, and if he does you have to be prepared to at least hide your true identity from him."

"And everything else? Harry still being alive, this secret room—"

"Let him find out about the room. In fact, you can report it to Lord Greengrass. They won't find anything in here to implicate me, but you reporting it will make them trust you more, and possible get us more information. I'm sure that together we can make another safe-haven."

"I'll spend some time in the library when I get a chance and look into it."

He smirked. "Why do I get the feeling you say that often?"

I hid a smile from him. "After the engagement party, we can say we're taking a trip together to celebrate. That'll be our excuse to get away and see him. I'll send reports to Lord Greengrass while we're away telling him we're somewhere else, throwing him off our trail."

"Good idea." His smile widened. "You know, I wasn't sure if you could pull this off."

I sent him a sideways look before opening up the picnic basket. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"That Astoria's personality is pretty much the opposite of yours, and I wasn't sure you could handle being thrown into the middle of the Emperor's politics."

"I can handle anything if it means saving Harry and beating Vol—the Dark Lord once and for all." I paused. "The diary is helping. I'm getting a better sense of who she was."

Malfoy joined me on the ground and pulled out a sandwich. "You can say his name in here, you know. Just now out there."

"Last time one of us said his name we were captured by snatchers and brought to your dungeon."

He suppressed a laugh. "That was a long time ago."

"An eternity," I mumbled.

We fell into silence. After a few minutes, Malfoy swallowed a bite of his sandwich and cleared his throat.

"Azkaban—being alone, always wondering what happened to everyone else—that must have been awful."

I glanced at him before looking back at my food. "It was," I said softly.

"Did you ever think about—I don't know—ending it all? Just starving yourself, or smashing your head against the wall, or something?"

"Honestly, the thought of suicide didn't really cross my mind. There were many times I wished I would die, but taking my own life—it just never occurred to me. Maybe if I'd been in there a couple more years I would have gotten to that point."

I stopped eating and looked at him with furrowed eyebrows. "Why do you ask?"

He sighed. "When I visited my mother, I could tell she'd stopped eating. I don't know if she'll stick to it or give in the next time she's brought food, but she hasn't even been in there that long so—I was just wondering if you'd ever thought about it."

He stared at his sandwich. I frowned, a little surprised that I was actually feeling sorry for him. I scooted a little closer to him and put my hand on his knee.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"What kept you going?"

I shrugged. "I guess, even at my lowest, I always held on to a tiny spark of hope. That's why I carved those words into my wall. The hope and the faith that all the sacrifice, all the death, wasn't pointless. That somehow, someday, the world will be a better place because of what we did, or tried to do."

He eyed me with an expression I couldn't quite place. Feeling uncomfortable, I took my hand off his knee and picked up my sandwich again.

We ate the rest of our meal in silence. When we were both finished, Malfoy stood as I packed things up.

"Guess we should say goodbye to this place," he said wryly. "We won't be able to come back here again after you talk to Lord Greengrass."

"If you don't come back, it'll look suspicious," I said as I stood. "Don't do anything to incriminate yourself, but don't make them think you know they know about this room either."

He smirked again. "I see why Potter kept you around."

Again, I hid a smile.

Malfoy took my hand as we stepped outside. As we headed back to the manor, we discussed a wedding date. Naturally, we set it as far in the future as we could without being conspicuous. Malfoy decided he'd announce the date at the engagement party the next evening.

The idea of attending that event sent my stomach into knots. Yes, I'd told him I could handle it, but that didn't mean it wasn't going to be extremely difficult. I had to get through the diary, learn as much as I could about who Astoria was, who her friends were, how she'd act.

When we walked through the front door of the manor, Lord Greengrass was descending the main staircase. He forced a smile when he saw us.

"I see the happy couple has returned from their long lunch," he said. "Anything interesting happen?"

"We finally decided on a wedding date," I said, leaning in to Malfoy and putting on my best smile. "We plan on announcing it at the party tomorrow, but if you'd like to know—"

"I can wait until then. You go ahead and keep it a surprise." His smile seemed even more strained. "Darling, I wonder if I might have a moment of your time."

"Of course, Father."

I handed Malfoy the basket and stood on my tiptoes to kiss him. He raised his eyebrows slightly, seemingly surprised that I was suddenly playing along. I sent him a small smirk before turning away and following Lord Greengrass into the study.

In truth, I wasn't entirely sure why I was more willing to go along with his plan now than a couple hours ago. All I knew was I was determined to do anything to bring Harry back and defeat Voldemort. And if that meant pretending to be in love with Draco Malfoy, so be it.

When we reached the study, Lord Greengrass closed the door. "Please tell me you have _something _worth mentioning."

I put on a mischievous grin. "As a matter of fact, I did find something interesting. It's in the gardens."

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**A/N: **Please review! I would ever so appreciate it :)


	9. Funeral

**Chapter Nine: Funeral**

I stepped out of the study. Lord Greengrass followed me out. There was an evil grin on his face. He immediately went back upstairs, probably to report to the Emperor.

A deep breath escaped my lips, and I looked around. Malfoy was nowhere to be seen. A servant came out of the dining room, and I walked over to him.

"Excuse me," I said, "but do you think you could show me to the library?"

The young man stared at me with a shocked expression. I bit my lip.

_Too polite, Hermione, _I thought.

"This way, Miss," he said after he'd gathered himself. I followed him, paying attention to the route. After what seemed like ages, we finally stopped, and he opened a nearby door.

"Thank you, that will be all," I said, trying to sound a little more commanding. The servant bowed as I entered and shut the door behind me.

_In the future, try not to say "Thank you." Astoria wouldn't._

I spun around, searching for the source of the voice in my head. Malfoy was lounging on a nearby sofa, book in hand. He glanced at me knowingly, then back to his book.

I recovered from the shock and walked up to him. "Hello, Darling," I said, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"What did your father want?" he said casually.

"Oh, you know him. Always treating me like his baby girl." I sat on the couch at his feet. "He was just giving me some advice."

Malfoy looked back at his book again, but I heard his voice in my mind.

_Did you tell him about the room? Don't speak, just nod yes or no._

I gave him a very small nod yes.

_Good. Now, with your permission, I'm going to try to access some of your memories. Your mind is much too open—you need to learn to close it. We're lucky you haven't given us up already._

I shot him a dirty look. He pretended not to notice.

_You said you know some occlumency. Let's see what you know. Get up from the couch when you're ready to start._

Taking a deep breath, I stood and walked toward the nearest bookshelf. Almost immediately, I felt a presence in my mind, riffling through my memories. Image after image was brought to the front of my mind—getting my Hogwarts letter, riding on the train, using the time-turner, fighting in the Department of Mysteries, Dumbledore's funeral.

I feebly attempted to put up walls, while at the same time hiding my mental distress. Slowly I regained control and built my walls higher, stronger. At some point I'd reached the bookshelf, and I started scanning the spines for something I would be interested in.

_That's a good start, but it's not going to be enough to stop the Emperor, _Malfoy thought.

Suddenly, he was inside my mind again, breaking down my walls. This time, all the images were of Ron. Yelling at him at the Yule Ball, watching him in quidditch, seeing him with Lavender—seeing him splinched, watching him leave me and Harry, the day he came back, fighting with him, kissing him—

I let out a gasp and dropped to my hands and knees.

Malfoy stood from the sofa. "Is everything all right?"

But he didn't let up. I struggled against him, tried to push him out of my mind, but with no success. Painful memory after painful memory was brought to the surface, of all the death I'd witnessed, all the destruction.

Gritting my teeth, I pushed those memories aside and brought up one very specific one: punching Malfoy in the face.

The assault ended abruptly. I stood and turned to see that Malfoy had stopped dead in his tracks halfway to me. Through my heavy breathing, I grinned.

"I'm fine, Draco."

After a moment, he smirked. "All right, then."

He turned away. I built up my walls again, but this time armed them. The best defense is a good offense, after all.

I could tell from Malfoy's expression that he wasn't done with me, but he seemed to be giving me a break. I returned my attention to the books in front of me. Nothing in this section seemed particularly helpful, at least not for creating a new safe-haven. I moved deeper into the library. The books didn't seem to be organized at all, and I knew I was in for a challenge finding what I needed.

"Astoria, Dear, come join us!"

I jumped slightly before walking back towards the front of the library. Malfoy was closing his book, and Lady Greengrass stood in the doorway.

"What for?" I asked.

"We're all going into the living room to watch the funeral."

"I still don't understand why he's doing this," Malfoy grumbled as he stood. "She was a filthy mudblood, and a traitor. Why hold a funeral for her in the first place, let alone televise it?"

"We'll know soon enough," I said, taking his arm.

As we walked down the hall, he sent me an apologetic look. I shrugged it off. The things he said didn't bother me. I knew very well that Voldemort had turned the world against people like me, and I fully expected him to demonize me more at my 'funeral.' I could handle it.

But that didn't mean I was looking forward to it.

We entered the living room, and sure enough there was a large television mounted over the fireplace. In the world I remembered, wizards didn't watch television.

I sent Malfoy a confused look. His gaze seemed to say, "I'll explain later."

We sat down on the couch. Malfoy put his arm around me. I scooted closer to him and leaned my head on his shoulder. As much as I didn't want to admit it, it was nice to have someone to be close to after all those years in Azkaban, even if that someone used to be my worst enemy.

Daphne grabbed the remote and switched the telly on. I caught my breath as 'The Emperor' appeared on the screen. His red eyes were just as piercing and horrible as ever, seeming to stare right through the screen into your soul. I involuntarily moved even closer to Malfoy, and he ran his fingers through my hair.

There was a large crowd gathered around him. After a moment, I recognized the place—they were at Hogwarts, in front of the lake. To Voldemort's left, what appeared to be my body was lying on what looked like an altar. He moved behind it and looked down at Astoria, believing it was me. I thought I saw the corners of his lips turn upwards in a wicked smile, but it was so slight I couldn't be sure.

"We are here today," he began in his high-pitched voice, "not to celebrate the death of a traitor, but to mourn a _waste_ of talent."

His voice sent shivers up and down my spine. Malfoy held me tighter.

"In her youth, Miss Granger was led astray by the wicked Albus Dumbledore, as were many of her peers," he continued. "Because her blood was not pure, she joined Harry Potter and fought against me and my loyal followers. But what this bright young woman failed to grasp was that there are roles for _all _people in my empire.

"I personally visited her many times during her stay in Azkaban, but her mind was so corrupted that nothing I could say would sway her." He shook his head, feigning regret. "If she had only given me her loyalty, and let go of her pride, she would have been freed from her cell to find a new, fulfilling life serving those above her station."

I clenched my fists. As always, everything out of his mouth was a lie. He never came to see me, and if he had it would only have been to taunt. This was nothing but a publicity stunt, an attempt to convince his subjects he was merciful, even understanding. The idea that he was using _my _death to increase his power and influence was sickening.

"It is my greatest hope that you do not make the same mistake." He held out his hands. "Subject yourselves to me, and I offer you a rich, rewarding place in my empire."

He waved his wand, and the body in front of him burst into flames. I could almost feel the heat of that fire.

Suddenly, there was a loud explosion, and Voldemort whirled around. Fireworks burst in the air behind him. I sat up straight as they formed three words:

_LONG LIVE POTTER._

My heart jumped in my chest. Almost immediately, the program cut to a commercial. It took every ounce of self-control to keep my lips from bursting into a huge smile.

* * *

**A/N: **I hope you're all still enjoying the story! I have some great things in store, so keep reading, and keep reviewing!


	10. Appearances

**Chapter Ten: Appearances**

"What a dreadful site!" Lady Greengrass exclaimed as Daphne shut off the telly. "How dare the rebels make such a scene!"

"They'll be history before long," Lord Greengrass said, not sounding at all concerned. "They get weaker and weaker every day."

One by one, everyone stood and left the room. I was still staring at the screen, my heart beating wildly, wondering who had been behind the fireworks. I thought back to when the Weasley twins made that scene during our fifth year, running away from Hogwarts. If anyone knew how to manipulate fireworks like that, it would be George.

Which meant he, at least, was still alive.

Suddenly a memory was forced to the front of my mind—Fred lying on the ground, dead.

I pushed Malfoy out and rebuilt my walls, standing to face him. He shot me a warning look, as if to say "Don't let your guard down."

"What do you think the point of that was?" I said, resisting the urge to glare at him.

He shrugged as we walked out of the room together. "The war with the muggles is almost over. He's probably trying to win their sympathies, 'relate' to them or something. Same reason we have those monstrosities called 'televisions' in our homes now. Honestly, the things these muggles come up with."

I let out a sound halfway between a scoff and a laugh. That explained the telly, at least. Still, it seemed odd that he'd want to get the muggles on his side in the first place. I thought back to what he said during the funeral—that I could have had a life 'serving those above my station.'

We passed a few servants on our way back to the library, and I at once understood. I hadn't seen a single house-elf since returning to Malfoy Manor, because now the half-bloods and muggle-borns were the servants.

And he planned on luring the muggles into slavery.

I shook my head in disgust. No one realized just how much of a hypocrite he was. Voldemort himself was a half-blood, and by his own law should be waiting tables or cleaning lavish hallways.

If people did know about his paternity, however, they were apparently smart enough to keep quiet about it.

I spent the rest of the afternoon searching the library for useful information, without much luck. I found a few cloaking spells I didn't already know, but nothing strong enough to create the kind of safe-haven Malfoy and I needed. What we really needed to create was a portal of sorts, a pathway between somewhere here at the manor and another place we could protect.

My nose was buried in _Spells for the Overly Cautious _when Daphne poked her head around a nearby bookcase.

"Stori! What are you doing back here?"

I closed the book, marking my place, and set it on top of the ever-growing pile next to me. "Just some research."

Daphne laughed. "_You_? That seems a little out of character."

I bit my lip. "Father asked me to look into something."

"Oh, well in that case," she sat down next to me. "Anything I can do to help?"

"No, I'm about done for the night." I forced a smile. "Besides, I'm not sure he'd want me talking about it with anyone but him."

She sighed. "Fine. You always were his favorite. I guess I shouldn't be surprised nothing's changed."

We stood at the same time. She stomped away before I could even think of a response. I frowned.

_Don't pity her—she'd turn on you in a second if she knew who you really were._

I sighed and shook it off. I put most of the books back where I'd found them, but kept the others set aside, hoping they wouldn't attract attention.

At dinner, toasts were again made in celebration of my death. I sank in my seat a little more with each one. Not only was I there in the room, but the death they were actually celebrating was Astoria's. The situation was, to say the least, uncomfortable.

Again, I had to remind myself who these people were, what they were capable of. I glanced at Lord Greengrass and thought back to the night they took me to Azkaban. He was one of the three men who'd pulled me away from Ron, who'd ruthlessly tortured me until Voldemort sent dementors to take me to the prison. Even when the others had had enough, he continued to throw curse after curse at me, relishing in every cut, every bruise I sustained.

Malfoy cleared his throat, breaking my train of thought. "I thought you would all like to know that the day after tomorrow, Astoria and I are going on a trip, just the two of us, to celebrate our engagement more privately."

He took my hand. I did my best to smile.

"Where are you going?" Daphne asked, excitement in her voice.

"We decided on Italy, didn't we Dear?" I said.

"Yes. Rome, then Venice. We'll be sure to send you postcards."

"We're looking forward to getting them," said Lord Greengrass. I shut my eyes, the memory of his evil laughter ringing in my ears.

As soon as I was finished with my food, I left, using the excuse that I wanted to get plenty of rest before the party tomorrow. Somehow I found my way back to the bedroom just fine on my own. I quickly changed, then climbed into bed and picked up Astoria's diary from the nightstand. I'd only had time to read a couple entries the night before, but I really needed to finish it if I was going to fool everyone at the party tomorrow. By the time Malfoy entered the room, I was just under halfway through it.

"I thought you wanted to get some rest," he said as he loosened his tie.

"I wanted to, but I can't sleep," I said with a half-smile. "I'm nervous about tomorrow."

"Why?" He was now unbuttoning his shirt. "Your mother's taking care of everything. All you have to do is show up."

He took off his shirt. For a moment I was distracted. He stepped out of my sight into the closet, and I could think clearly again.

"She said the Emperor might be there," I said, clearing my throat. "That's a lot of pressure."

"You have nothing to worry about." He emerged from the closet in a t-shirt and sweats and climbed onto the bed next to me.

I sent him a nervous smile before returning all my attention to the diary, ignoring the fact that he was lying next to me as much as possible. I didn't last much longer before my eyelids started drooping. I still had over a third of the diary left, but it wouldn't do me any good to read it if I was so tired I couldn't remember what I read the next morning.

Reluctantly, I set the book aside and turned out the light. As I drifted off to sleep, I thought of George and prayed that he, and whoever helped him, made it out of his little stunt alive.

* * *

**A/N: **A huge thank you to everyone for all of your support so far on this story! Chapter Eleven is in the works, and I'll post it today or tomorrow. Please review!


	11. Charade

**Chapter Eleven: Charade**

I was running. There were too many injured, too many people that needed to be helped. We wouldn't be able to help them all before the Death Eaters attacked again, but we had to try.

Someone grabbed my arm. I spun around and my cheeks flushed red.

Ron brushed my hair out of my face. I winced when he bumped a cut over my eye. He frowned.

"You're taking care of everyone else, but who's taking care of you?"

"It's nothing," I said, starting to pull away. "Just a scratch."

He held firmly to my arm with his left hand, and drew out his wand with his right. With a wave, the cut was clean, and throbbed considerably less. I couldn't help but smile.

"See? I was paying attention to some of what you taught me."

"Ron Weasley, you surprise me every day."

He pulled me in close and pressed his lips against mine. They were so warm.

I broke off the kiss and stepped away, my cheeks turning even redder when I noticed people staring at us. "There's not time for this. We have to help the injured."

He reluctantly let me go. I turned and headed for Pansy Parkinson, who'd broken her leg somehow. As I neared her, I heard someone shouting, and turned. Two girls, both in Slytherin uniforms, were screaming at each other. I hurried over.

"What if they win?" a blonde girl said, anxiety in her voice. I recognized her—Daphne Greengrass. She was in our year.

"And what if they don't win? What if _he _does?" the brunette was saying. She seemed to be a couple years younger than Daphne. "Think of what you're doing to the family!"

"Is there a problem here?"

The brunette whirled around. "Yes. The problem is you, and everyone else fighting in this stupid battle. We should all just join him, for Merlin's sake! What are you even _fighting _for?"

She stomped off. Daphne watched her go, her eyes filling with tears. I bit my lip and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Hang in there," I whispered. "We're going to come out on top. You'll see."

She forced a smile, then took a deep breath. "Go, take care of Pansy. She looks like she's in a lot of pain."

I turned and ran straight into Ginny.

"Where is he? I can't find him anywhere!"

"Gin, calm down! Where is who?"

"Harry! Have you seen him?"

I opened my eyes and stared up at the ceiling of Malfoy's bedroom. I looked to my right—he was still sleeping soundly. Slowly, I climbed out of bed and threw on a robe. I fumbled around in the darkness until I'd found Astoria's diary, then left the room.

Astoria was the brunette that night, during the Battle of Hogwarts. I'd completely forgotten about seeing Daphne there, about her fighting on our side. If my memory was right, Astoria was the one who was rooting for Voldemort. Daphne had a change of heart.

Could it be that she didn't mean all the horrible things she was saying now? Was she, just like me, putting on an act to survive?

I shook my head and set aside the thought. Finding a bench, I sat down to read. The more I read, the more I despised the person I was pretending to be. She was heartless, always exploiting others for her personal gain, and one hundred percent loyal to the Emperor. How Malfoy had pretended to be in love with her was a mystery to me. How I was going to pretend to _be _her this evening was an even bigger mystery.

By the time the sun came up, I was on the last entry.

_Well, Diary, I'm pregnant._

_I didn't really plan this, but I can use it to my advantage. Draco still doesn't suspect me, and once he finds out I'm carrying his child—well, we'll be closer than ever._

_I know I'm close to figuring out something big, I just don't know what. He's been getting mysterious letters lately that he won't let me read, and he keeps them locked in his desk. If I can just get it open, I'm sure to find something that the Emperor will reward me handsomely for. If I wrap this up quickly enough, maybe I won't have to go through with having the baby anyway, and I can finally take this eyesore of a ring off my finger._

I closed the book. How was I supposed to act like _that_?

As I walked back to the room, I came to the conclusion that Astoria probably wouldn't show her true colors in public, anyway. If I could somehow channel everything I'd read into a more proper, polite setting, I could pull this off.

Maybe.

When I opened the door, Malfoy was just getting out of bed. He blinked, obviously still half-asleep.

"How long have you been awake?" he grumbled.

"A few hours. I didn't want to wake you, so I stepped out."

He yawned as he stood. "You should try to get some more sleep. Rest up for the party."

He pulled off his shirt and headed for the bathroom. I quickly looked away. Seeing him shirtless made me oddly uncomfortable.

Instead of climbing back into bed as he suggested, I went into the closet and picked out an outfit. I would obviously change before the party tonight, but I might as well wear something else suitable until then.

The day went by much too slowly. I spent less time in the library than the day before, merely to avoid suspicion. And it wasn't like I had nothing to do—people were coming in and out of the house constantly, decorating it for the celebration. Lady Greengrass asked for my opinion on a few things, but I barely had time to give it before she'd made the final decision. That was fine with me—this wasn't really my engagement party, anyway.

I noticed that Daphne was very quiet throughout the whole day. I remembered something Astoria'd written in her diary, how the Emperor initially suggested Daphne be the one to seduce Malfoy, but her father chose her instead. It seemed an odd thing to be upset about, _not _having to pretend to be in love with someone to uncover their secrets, but I had a feeling there was more behind it. "You always were his favorite," she'd said.

Regardless of how the real Astoria would have acted, I decided to say something to her, try to cheer her up. As I approached her, I felt a strong hand on my shoulder and turned around.

Blaise Zabini was grinning at me. "Well, well, if it isn't the bride-to-be. Charming to see you again after so long."

I grinned back. I'd been expecting this—Blaise and Astoria dated right up until she started going after Malfoy.

"It's good to see you too, Blaise," I said. "I'm glad you got your invitation."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," he said mischievously. He pulled me into a tight hug and pressed his lips against my ear.

"I can't wait for Malfoy to be out of the way, and we can be together again," he whispered, then kissed my cheek.

I suppressed a shiver. That was a detail she neglected to include in her journal writing.

"You're early," I said as I stepped back, keeping my voice steady.

"Draco asked me to pop in. I expect he's going to ask me to be the best man." He winked.

I felt like vomiting. "I was just about to head upstairs, I'll send him down."

I passed Daphne on my way to the bedroom, but decided I could talk to her during the party. At the moment, I just wanted to get as far away from Zabini as possible.

Draco was leaving the bedroom just as I reached it. I told him Zabini was downstairs, then hurried inside to change. The party was starting in just under an hour, and I hadn't decided what I was going to wear yet. After a few minutes of deliberation, I chose a stunning blue, floor-length gown with a low V-neck and lower back.

When I was dressed, I stared at myself in the mirror. Hermione Granger would _never _wear something like this, but it was exactly what Astoria Greengrass would wear. She wanted to be noticed by everyone.

With a flick of my wand, my hair was perfectly straight and sleek. I retrieved a pearl headband and pearl earrings from Astoria's jewelry box, completing the look. I looked almost frighteningly beautiful.

By the time I got downstairs, guests had already started arriving. I put up walls around my thoughts, feeling incredibly fearful. Despite my fear, I greeted each guest with a smile, saying as little as possible. I recognized many of those in attendance—from fighting them.

At length, I caught a glimpse of Malfoy on the other side of the drawing room and made my way toward him. As I was about to reach him, a shrill voice stopped me dead in my tracks.

"Let's take a look at the girl who's going to marry my nephew, shall we?"

I slowly turned to see Bellatrix Lestrange, but she wasn't the Bellatrix I remembered. Her wild hair was tamed in a complicated updo. Her dress was still black, but it put mine to shame. She had a black boa draped across her shoulders, and twirled it as she approached me.

"Good evening," I said, trying to forget what happened the last time the two of us were in this room together.

She eyed me for a moment before leaning in. "You know, I have to warn you," she breathed on my face, "marrying into the Malfoy's could be your undoing. It certainly was my sister's."

"I have all the faith in the world that Draco's more loyal than his father," I said as confidently as I could.

She considered me for another moment before straightening. "Well then a hearty congratulations to you both," she said loudly, raising her glass.

"Well said, my pet."

I caught my breath. The crowd in front of me parted to reveal the Emperor himself. He seemed to glide, not walk, toward me. Bellatrix gazed at him lovingly and took his arm when he offered it.

He looked me up and down, finally locking his eyes on mine. "You must be the enchanting Miss Greengrass I've heard so much about. What a pleasure to finally meet you."

I lowered myself to the ground in a deep curtsy, harboring hatred in my heart.

"The pleasure is all mine, Your Imperial Majesty."

* * *

**A/N: **Longer chapter, but I think you'll agree it was worth it. I hope you're having half as much fun reading this as I am writing it! Please review!


	12. Emperor

**Chapter Twelve: Emperor**

"My Liege! It is an honor to welcome you into my home."

I straightened. Sometime in the last few minutes Draco had made his way over to me. I took his arm, avoiding the gaze of those horrid red eyes.

"How could I miss your engagement party, Draco? You're like a son to me," said Voldemort, the lie gliding easily off his tongue.

"And you a father to me," said Draco.

"And as a father figure, I believe it is my duty to interview the lady on your arm." He released Bellatrix and extended a hand to me. "Shall we, Miss Greengrass?"

I felt a stab of fear, but ignored it. I put on my very best smile, kissed Draco's cheek, and took the Emperor's arm.

"I am very humbled, my Liege," I said.

The crowd parted for us as we walked out to the gardens. People weren't staring, however—even the most loyal Death Eaters were avoiding eye contact with the Dark Lord, still afraid of him. No one wanted him to notice them—they just wanted to stay out of his way.

Astoria wasn't like that—she would relish this opportunity, to speak privately with the Emperor. It was what she'd been working towards, what she was hoping for. Somehow I needed to convince him I was excited, rather than terrified.

"Your father speaks very highly of you," he said once we were out of earshot of the party. "He has complete faith in your abilities."

"I hope to instill the same faith in you, my Liege," I said.

He let out what I thought was a small laugh. "I admire your confidence."

And then, I felt him prodding at my mind. I resisted the urge to push him out, but didn't let my walls down either.

"I see you value your privacy," he said, a note of warning in his tone.

"A precaution only," I said, surprised to hear how steady my voice was. "I do not think Draco suspects me, but I keep my thoughts guarded at all times, just in case."

The prodding stopped. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his lips twist into a smile.

"You are a very intelligent young woman," he hissed with a hint of approval. "I see why your father has such confidence in you."

I sighed inwardly, masking my relief. I just lied directly to Voldemort and got away with it.

"What are you observations of him as of late?" he asked as we turned and headed back toward the house.

"He spends a lot of time on his own—I'm sure he's working on something. And during the funeral service yesterday, and afterwards, he seemed distracted."

His expression hardened. I knew I was on dangerous ground mentioning the funeral, but I couldn't help myself. If there was even the slightest chance he would tell me something, I had to try.

I stopped walking and turned to face him. "If I may be so bold, I was appalled by the treasonous display at the end of your beautiful service. I wondered if there was any way I could be of use in tracking down those responsible."

Voldemort eyed me with an expression I couldn't quite read. I held my breath.

"Unfortunately, the culprits are still at large," he said at length. "The explosion was remote, and they were nowhere near Hogwarts when it went off."

I masked my delight and frowned instead. "Do you have any idea who's responsible for the incident?"

"The same people who have been evading capture for the past seven years," he said, malice in his voice. "I am sure there is a traitor within my council helping them. That is why, once you've finished with Draco, I would like you to come work with me as a private secretary and investigate each member of my council one by one."

"I would be incredibly honored, my Liege," I said with a slight bow.

He grinned at me and took my arm once more. "Your loyalty will not go unrewarded. When Draco is taken care of, you will receive Malfoy Manor to do with as you please."

"You are too generous," I said, feigning surprise. "The opportunity to serve you is reward enough."

He laughed. "You're even more intelligent than I thought, Astoria Greengrass. It will be a pleasure having you in my court."

We'd reached the manor again, and he kissed my hand before releasing me and gliding over to Bellatrix.

Almost immediately, Draco was by my side. "How did it go?" he asked, handing me a drink.

"Couldn't have been better."

He grinned. "Well then, I think it's about time we made our announcement, don't you?"

I took his hand and kissed his cheek in response. Together, we made our way through the crowd to the entryway and up to the top of the staircase. Once there, Draco cleared his throat loudly.

"Can I have everyone's attention please?"

After a few moments, the crowd died down. People who were in other rooms crowded into the entryway. I smiled down at all of them, and for the first time it wasn't forced. Knowing that George and whoever else was involved were safe was enough to keep me smiling all night, no matter how unpleasant the company.

"Astoria and I would like to thank each and every one of you individually for attending our engagement part—but seeing as there are so many of you, this public thanks will have to do."

A chuckle ran through the crowd. I joined in.

Draco continued. "Many of you have been asking me for weeks what date to mark on your calendars, and I'm pleased to put an end to the suspense. My darling fiancé and I will be married June 25th of next year."

Everyone broke into a polite applause. Draco looked down at me, a loving smile on his face. Though I knew it was all part of the act, there was an uncomfortable tightening in my chest when he looked at me that way. I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him, and there was even more applause and cheers from our guests.

Suddenly, all noise stopped. I looked out into the crowd. The Emperor was approaching the stairs, Bellatrix still hanging on his arm.

"Surely you two don't want to wait almost a full year to say your vows," he said in his high-pitched voice. "No, your wedding will be held on New Years Eve, at my palace. I will not take no for an answer."

Draco looked stunned. For once, I recovered more quickly.

"As always, your generosity is incredibly humbling, my Liege. Of course we will accept your offer."

"And what better way to bring in the new year than by joining two people in love?" he said, a horrible smirk on his face. "We will begin planning for the occasion immediately."

Again, the crowd burst into applause, but though it was louder, it was considerably less genuine. Draco and I both bowed to the Dark Lord, hiding our discomfort. We glanced at each other, and I knew we were both thinking the same thing.

Harry better get out of that coma before December.

* * *

**A/N: **I will try to get at least one more chapter in today! Thank you all for the wonderful reviews!


	13. Vacation

**Chapter Thirteen: Vacation**

The party couldn't be over soon enough. The minute the Emperor left, the rest of the guests followed his lead. I let out a sigh of relief when the last of them was gone.

"Did you not enjoy your party, Darling?" said Lady Greengrass, as if I'd hit her with a stunning spell.

"No, it was wonderful," I said with a tired smile. "Just—long. And I could have done with about a third of the people."

"Well, you're a high-profile couple. You have to get used to gatherings like this." She kissed my cheek before walking off.

Draco took her place. "Shall we start packing for Italy?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Daphne heading toward the library. "I'll meet you upstairs," I said to him, then followed her down the hall.

"Daphne, wait!"

She reluctantly stopped and turned around. "What do you want, Stori?"

"Look," I sighed, "I know things haven't always been easy between us, but I hope you can believe me when I tell you how much I love you."

"The way you love Draco, you mean."

I frowned. "No. I actually do love you, Daph. In fact, I wanted to ask you to be my maid of honor."

"At your fake wedding?"

"At any wedding I have," I said, taking her hands. "Whether it be this December or in ten years. You're my sister, and I love you."

Her expression softened slightly. "Fine, if that's what you want."

I pulled her into a hug. "Nothing would make me happier."

She hesitated a minute before returning the embrace. When we parted, I thought I glimpsed a smile. No sooner had I seen it then she was gone.

I smiled to myself as I walked back to the bedroom. I didn't care who Astoria was or how she'd act. For however long I was Daphne's sister, I was going to be a good one.

When I reached the room, Draco had already pulled out two suitcases. His was already half full. He smiled at me as I entered.

"I would have started packing yours, but I know how particular you can be."

I walked up to him and wrapped him in a hug from behind. "I'm really excited for this trip," I whispered.

He set aside the pants he'd been folding and put his hands on mine. "Me too. I know how badly you've been wanting to see Italy again."

I smiled against his shirt. In that moment, I don't know if anything could have brought down my spirits. I was less than twenty-four hours away from seeing my best friend for the first time in seven years. I didn't care if he was in a coma—he was alive.

There was always the chance that Malfoy was playing games with me, but for some reason I didn't think that anymore. I broke off the hug and watched him as he continued to pack. He seemed just as excited as I was. Whoever I was looking at, it wasn't the Draco Malfoy I went to school with. He'd changed somehow.

After a few minutes he noticed me watching him and chuckled. "Are you just going to stare at me, or are you going to pack too?"

My cheeks burned and I hurried into the closet to change out of my dress before packing. We finished about the same time—turns out I wasn't so particular.

When we got into bed, Draco absentmindedly wrapped his arms around me. I couldn't explain why, but his embrace no longer made me feel uncomfortable.

That fact, however, did.

* * *

We rose early in the morning. Lord and Lady Greengrass were already up, to see us off. They each took a turn embracing me, and Lord Greengrass gave Draco a firm handshake.

"You take care of my daughter," he said.

Draco laughed. "I think Astoria can take care of herself, but I'll watch over her, I promise."

"How are you getting there?" Lady Greengrass asked.

"I've booked a portkey for us. We'll pick it up at the travel agency."

"All right then. Have a safe trip!"

We said goodbye, then Draco put an arm around my waist and apparated. I looked around—we were in the middle of a forest.

"We're not at a travel agency."

"Astute observation, Granger."

"Oh, suddenly it's safe to talk again?"

"You think I'd apparate somewhere they could track us?"

I rolled my eyes. "Okay, where are we going then and how are we getting there?"

"By portkey, like I said. Well, a couple portkeys actually. One wouldn't be enough."

I raised my eyebrows. "Where are we going?"

He just smirked and started walking up the hill. I sighed and followed him. I should have known better than to expect a straight answer.

After a few minutes, he stopped. I caught up to him and looked around.

"I don't see it."

"Of course not. That's the point. We're trying to hide our true location, aren't we? A registered portkey is too easy to track."

"But you did actually book a portkey to Italy, didn't you?"

"We're not going to Italy."

"I _know _that," I said, annoyed. "But if you told the Greengrasses you registered for one, they might check."

He narrowed his eyes. After a minute, he sighed.

"I'll take care of it once we get there."

I shook my head. "This is why you should have let me in on the plan in the first place."

"And risk the Emperor, or anyone else, finding out? I don't think so. Even if he found out Harry was alive from you, I needed to keep the location safe."

"In case you've forgotten, I spent a whole half hour alone with him and didn't blow my cover."

"Trust me, if you'd given him the slightest reason to suspect you we wouldn't be having this conversation. You're a fast learner, Hermione, but not that fast. He would have broken down your walls and had access to all of your memories within seconds."

I opened my mouth to retort, but he was done with the conversation. He grabbed my free hand, the one not holding my suitcase, and placed it on a nearby rock. I glared at him as I felt the portkey starting to work. I was so annoyed I hardly even registered that he'd called me by my first name.

When we landed, we were still in a forest, but it was clearly somewhere else. The trees were greener, and closer together. I looked around.

"Are you going to tell me where we're going now?"

"You'll know soon enough."

Gritting my teeth, I forced myself to follow him again. This time, the portkey was a log. I put my hand on it without question, wondering if I was making a huge mistake. When we landed this time, it was again in a forest, but unlike any other I'd ever seen. The trees were humongous—they were hundreds of feet tall, and at least fifty feet wide. I stared in awe.

"We're in the redwoods."

Draco just nodded.

"_California_?" I said in disbelief. "You brought Harry all the way to California?"

"The further from England the better, right?"

I couldn't argue with that.

He extended a hand, which I took with some reluctance, and we disapparated to a hotel. I didn't recognize the chain, but it looked nice. We walked up to the front counter, and the receptionist looked up.

"Do you have a reservation?"

"Yes. Christopher and Jean Scott."

I glanced at him. At least he thought far enough ahead to put our reservation under a false name.

After a minute, the receptionist handed us our keys. "Your suite's already paid for. Have a pleasant visit, Mr. and Mrs. Scott."

We went up to the room and dropped off our suitcases. It seemed nice, expensive, but I didn't really pay much attention to it—I was growing anxious. If what Draco'd told me was true, I was moments away from seeing Harry again.

He could sense my anxiety. Once the porter had left the room, he took my hand again. My heart leapt and I closed my eyes as we apparated for what I assumed was the last time.

When I opened them, we were standing outside a small hospital. I didn't speak as Draco led me through the front entrance and to the lift. We stepped inside. Instead of pressing one floor he pressed several, as if typing in a pin. The lift lurched backwards, and I grabbed onto the handle on the wall. We came to a quick stop and the doors opened, revealing another door.

"Peverell," Draco said loudly.

The door swung open. My heart beat wildly. We walked down a series of hallways until we reached another door. The password for this one was "Marauders." Behind that, more hallways, then dead end.

Draco drew his wand, mumbled something, and traced a pattern on the wall. The wall disappeared to reveal a young nurse standing behind it.

"The snake always catches his prey," she said.

"But the lion is king," said Draco.

She smiled. "Welcome, Mr. Malfoy. We've been expecting you."

She turned and started walking down the halls. As we followed her, I look up at Draco with a raised eyebrow.

"You did all this?"

He shook his head. "I wouldn't know where to begin. My father did it, using his connections of course. You wouldn't care to hear about what he did with those who helped him afterwards, though."

I ignored the comment, and focused on the nurse in front of us. After what seemed like an eternity, we reached one last door. She turned the doorknob, and it opened inward.

I gasped and covered my mouth with both hands. A huge grin spread across Draco's face. Numb, I stumbled across the room to the hospital bed at the end. I gripped his hand with my right, and pushed up his jet-black hair with my left. My fingers traced the lightning-bolt scar on his forehead, and my breath caught in my throat.

"_Harry_."

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**A/N: **I know it's not the best written chapter (I was at work!) but the ending is what's important. Can't wait to read your reviews!


	14. Change

**Chapter Fourteen: Change**

"I thought you might be hungry. Would you like something to eat?"

I looked up at Draco, snapping myself back to the present. He offered me a sandwich and sent me a sideways smile. Slowly, I released Harry's hand to take the food.

"Thank you," I said softly.

Draco pulled up a chair and sat next to me. I took a couple bites of the sandwich, but I didn't really have an appetite. With my free hand, I reached out and played with Harry's hair. I'd been sitting here for hours, but I still couldn't believe it. He was _alive._

"I can have them make up a bed for you in here," Draco was saying. "You don't have to go back to the hotel."

I traced Harry's scar again before pulling my hand away. All I wanted, more than anything, was for him to wake up, to see those bright green eyes again, full of life—

"No," I said reluctantly. "It—it won't do any good to stay here."

"Have the doctors talked to you?"

I nodded. They talked to me. They told me he was doing well, that there wasn't much brain damage, that they thought he might pull through. They weren't being completely honest with me, of course. After being in a coma for seven years, I knew the chances of him coming out of it were small. I wasn't about to give up hope, but the reality of Harry's situation was grim.

Still, he was alive.

I shook my head and chuckled to myself. Draco eyed me curiously.

"What?"

"It seems impossible," I said, still gazing at my unconscious friend, "to survive the killing curse twice." I looked up at Draco. "He's beaten all the odds already. Who's to say he won't this time?"

Draco smiled. "That's what we're counting on, isn't it?"

We fell into silence. I forced myself to finish my sandwich, knowing that even though I didn't have an appetite my body needed food. As I ate, I couldn't help but stare at Draco. He noticed, and set aside his food.

"What is it now?"

"Why?" I muttered.

He leaned forward. "Why what?"

"Why do this?"

"I already told you. My mother realized there really was nothing to be gained from this war, so—"

"No," I said, cutting him off. "Why are _you _doing this?"

"I'm not sure I understand the question."

I shook my head. "It would have been so easy, so simple for you to come clean about Harry when your mother told you. I'm sure 'the Emperor' would reward you. You could have all the glory, all the riches you'd ever want. More than that, you wouldn't have to be afraid of the Dark Lord anymore. The Draco Malfoy I knew, the one who went to Hogwarts with me, would have done it in a heartbeat." I paused. "What happened to him?"

He smiled. "He grew up."

"That's not an answer."

"But it's the truth. That Draco Malfoy, the one you remember, took a long, hard look at his actions and what they'd caused. He saw the world around him falling into complete despair and hopelessness. He saw all the lies, all the deception for what it really was. And he saw you, and Longbottom, and the Weasleys, _still _speaking out and standing tall, even after you were beaten."

He looked into my eyes, more sincerity in his than I'd ever seen. "I'd never felt that way about anything, never been willing to give up everything for a cause, least of all the Dark Lord's." His smile widened. "Now I've found that feeling, that purpose. Whatever happens to me, I'm going to make sure that when Potter wakes up—and he _will _wake up—that the Dark Lord's empire falls, once and for all."

Something caught in my throat—I was completely speechless. After a moment, Draco stood and left the room. I watched him go, trying to sort through what I was feeling. Taking a deep breath, I looked back at Harry and ran my fingers through his hair one more time.

"Wake up soon," I whispered as I kissed his forehead.

I walked into the hall just as Draco was returning with two water bottles.

"Is everything all right?" he asked.

I nodded. "I'm ready to go back to the hotel now."

He looked confused. "I thought you'd want to stay longer."

I glanced into the room at Harry, then back at Draco, and felt my lips curve into a smile. "I can leave knowing he's in good hands."

He smiled back, and we walked down the hall, away from Harry's room. As we walked, I took Draco's hand. I thought I saw him look down at our hands intertwined, but I wasn't sure.

When we stepped out of the hospital, the sun was setting. We watched it for a moment before apparating back to our hotel room.

"I thought tomorrow we might go hiking in the redwoods," Draco said tentatively. "As long as we're here, we might as well do some site-seeing."

"I'd like that," I said quietly.

Draco grinned. "Great."

He released my hand and headed for the door. I frowned.

"Where are you going?"

"I just have something I need to take care of."

I smirked. "Making a trail to Italy?"

"No, I did that while we were at the hospital," he said, returning my smirk. "I'm sorry I didn't consult you more before, I was just trying to protect you, and Potter."

"I forgive you," I said, a little surprised by how much I meant it. "So what are you doing?"

"Just a business transaction. I'll be back soon."

I sighed as he left. It wished he would be more open with me, but I just had to accept that it was in his nature to be secretive. And for some reason, I no longer felt like he had to tell me everything. Something had changed in the past couple days, and I trusted him.

I turned on the television and got into a comfortable position on the bed. I tried to pay attention to what was on, but my mind wouldn't let me. I couldn't stop thinking about Draco, about how he'd changed, about how my feelings toward him had changed. It didn't make a lot of sense—just a few days ago I'd been in Azkaban, and though Draco was the one who'd freed me, he hadn't made it easy to trust him.

So why did I?

The door opened. I turned off the telly and climbed out of the bed. Draco smiled at me as he entered the room.

"Anything good on?"

I stared at him. He wasn't at all the man I'd expected him to be. Yes, he was still rough around the edges, but he _had _grown up. He'd become a better person.

A force that I couldn't explain compelled me to move toward him. Without understanding why, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my lips against his. After a moment of hesitation, he pulled me close and deepened the kiss. I responded, running my fingers through his hair.

He lifted me up, and my legs automatically wrapped around his waist. We staggered over to the bed, and he laid me down. I pulled on his shirt, bringing him down on top of me. He kissed me hungrily, with increasing passion. Slowly, his lips moved to my neck. I sighed.

I momentarily opened my eyes, shocked at what was happening. That's when I saw the stain on his collar.

"What is that?" I whispered.

He reluctantly pulled back. "What is what?" he breathed.

I grabbed his collar and examined it. There was a small red spot on the inside.

"Is that blood?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Why is there blood on your shirt?"

He frowned. "Is there? Did I cut myself or something?"

He reached up to feel his neck. I grabbed his hand before he could, and stared at his cuff. More red spots.

I pushed him off of me and scrambled to my feet. "What did you _do_?"

He looked at his sleeve and sighed. "Hermione, I can explain—"

"Can you? Because if that's what I think it is—"

"One of the nurses was threatening to talk," he yelled. "She would have given us away, gotten Harry killed—"

"Unbelievable!" I cried. I felt disgusting all over—all I wanted to do was wash out my mouth and take a long, cold shower. I turned toward the bathroom.

He grabbed my arm. "Hermione—"

"Don't!" I whirled around. "You haven't changed at all! You're still one of them. I was foolish to think otherwise."

"If I was one of them, Harry wouldn't be alive!"

"And if you were one of us, that nurse still would!" I screamed. "And so would Astoria, and so would your _child_!"

I wrenched my arm out of his grasp, grabbed my suitcase and my wand, and marched toward the door. Malfoy followed me.

"Where are you going?"

"Away from you!"

He let out a sound that resembled a growl. "If you're trying to blow our cover—"

"We said we'd be gone for a week, right? Well, I'll be back at the manor in a week. But until then, I am getting as far away from you as possible!"

He reached out for me again, but I disapparated, back into the redwoods. After a few minutes of searching, I found the portkey and touched it, still fuming. Malfoy would have to find another way back. When I'd reached the middle destination, wherever it was, I quickly found the rock and grabbed it, transporting myself back to England.

When I'd landed, I dropped the rock and my suitcase. My whole body was shaking. I crumbled to the ground and buried my face in my hands. I didn't cry—seemed I couldn't anymore—but I took long, deep breaths, trying to calm my anger and hatred.

When I'd finally calmed down, I stood. I needed to go somewhere, but where? I had no family left, and no way of finding Ginny and George and whoever else was still alive. I couldn't go back to Malfoy Manor, because as much as I hated to admit it pretending to be Astoria was the only way I was going to get close enough to the Emperor to defeat him.

I opened my suitcase and found a dark cloak inside. I wrapped it around myself, and pulled the hood over my head. Once I'd done that, I apparated to the first place that came to my mind, leaving the suitcase behind. I could come back to it later.

I caught my breath as I stared in front of me at what remained of the Burrow. The house, kept standing by magic, was now nothing but rubble. No one had bothered to clean it up after the war. Slowly, I walked forward, into the destruction.

I felt closer to Ron than I had in seven years standing in the ruins of his house. I closed my eyes tightly as I thought of him, what we could have had, what I almost gave to someone else. I felt so guilty for forgetting him, even for a moment. I could never feel for someone else what I'd felt for Ron.

There was a crack beneath my feet, and I looked down. I caught my breath as I picked up a picture, wiping away the broken glass. Harry, Ron, Ginny, and myself stared back at me and waved. We looked so happy, so hopeful. Harry kissed Ginny, and Ron put his arm around my shoulder. I shut my eyes again, wishing I could cry.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.

Suddenly, a hand covered my mouth. I tried to scream, but the sound was too muffled to hear. I dropped the picture and clawed at my attacker, trying to get free.

Something hit me on the head, and everything turned to black.

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**A/N: **Can't wait to hear your reviews on this one! What do you think will happen next? Next chapter in the works!


	15. Resistance

**Chapter Fifteen: Resistance**

My head was filled with voices. It sounded like people arguing, but I couldn't make out anything they were saying. My whole body ached. I tried to stretch out, but I couldn't move—I was tied to a chair. The air smelled like mildew, and I could hear water dripping in the distance.

With some effort, I forced my eyes open. I seemed to be in some sort of cave. It was dark, and my vision was blurred, but I could just make out someone in the distance. The figure moved in my direction, then turned into two figures, one short and one tall. As they drew closer, the voices became louder.

"We should just let her go—drop her off somewhere in the woods."

"That sounds like a _brilliant _idea, George."

"I'm not kidding! This was a horrible idea to begin with, Gin!"

My heart soared, and I blinked furiously to bring my eyes into focus.

"We never should have brought her here," George continued. "You know how close the Greengrasses are to the Dark Lord."

"Then she'll be of use to us, won't she?"

"Look, I know you're still upset about Hermione—we all are—but this kind of rash thinking is exactly what—"

They'd reached me. George cut himself off when he saw I was awake. Ginny continued walking towards me, her eyes narrow.

"Ginny," I breathed, hardly believing my eyes.

"I see I need no introduction." She folded her arms. "Then again, I have been the Empire's 'Most Wanted' for the past seven years. You, however, just recently made the papers. Congratulations on your engagement."

Her sarcasm was meant as a slate. It brought a huge smile to my face.

"Let's get right down to it," she said, apparently ignoring my expression. "What were you doing at my old house?"

I laughed. "I don't know. It was the first place I thought to go."

They both stared at me. My smile grew wider and wider by the minute.

"What do you mean?" George asked.

"Well, it was either there or Grimmauld Place, but the Burrow's more remote, so—"

"So you were looking for us," Ginny said.

"No." I shook my head and laughed again. "I had no idea I would run into you."

"Maybe we hit her head too hard," George muttered.

I laughed again. They exchanged a confused glance, then turned to leave.

"No, wait! Don't go!"

Ginny paused and half-turned around. "So you're going to tell us what you were doing there?"

"I wanted to be close to Ron, and it was the only place that seemed right."

George turned now as well. Ginny narrowed her eyes even more.

"My brother is dead. And why would you want to be 'close' to him, anyway?"

"Ginny," I said, leaning forward eagerly, "it's me, Hermione."

Both of them froze. George looked shocked. Ginny's expression, on the other hand, was unreadable.

"You're lying," she spat.

"I'm not! I drank some Polyjuice potion—"

"Then this should be easy to settle," George said, trying to shake off the surprise. "You've been here for about forty minutes. If what you say is true, then within the next half hour—"

"No, it's—it's not that simple." My spirits started dropping. "The potion's been perfected. It won't wear off for a month—"

Ginny scoffed. "Nice try. Next time come up with a lie that's even remotely believable."

"I'm telling you the truth!" I yelled desperately as they both turned back around. "You have to believe me!"

They didn't stop. I racked my brains for some way to prove to them that I wasn't lying, to convince them of the truth.

"George! You and Fred gave Harry the Marauder's Map in our third year!"

They both stopped again. George turned around and approached me.

"What did you say?"

"The two of you stole it from Filch in what, your first year, right? You gave it to Harry so he could sneak into Hogsmeade, because his aunt and uncle wouldn't sign is permission form. You showed him the one-eyed witch passageway into Honeydukes, the password is dissendium."

George eyed me curiously. "Who told you about that?"

"Harry did, and I was furious." I laughed. "By the way, I was a big fan of the show you put on at my funeral. It was the perfect finale."

I winked at him. He hid a smirk.

Ginny didn't look convinced. "There are a number of ways you could know that."

I kept my eyes on George. "I also know that when you lost your ear smuggling Harry out of Privet Drive, when Fred asked you how you felt, you said you felt saint-like because you were 'hole-y.'" I smirked. "We both know you could have come up with a better joke."

He frowned. "I thought that was a pretty good one."

"Shut up, George!" Ginny snapped as I laughed again. "She wasn't really there! She's just messing with us."

"Ginny, you only started dating Dean because you thought it would make Harry jealous. You told me so yourself."

She snorted. "That's the best you got? Anyone could have figured that out."

I tried to think of another moment, a time we had been completely alone. Just as she was about to turn away again, I thought of one.

"The night before Bill and Fleur's wedding," I said, "we stayed up late, talking. That was the first time I admitted I loved Ron, and you told me that if I put down my books for two seconds I'd be able to see that he loved me too."

She folded her arms again, but she looked a little rattled. "That conversation could have been overheard."

"I have a question for her," came another voice. I smiled again as a young woman with long, blonde hair walked in the room.

"Luna! You still wear the radish earrings!"

She fingered them fondly as she spoke. "Your fifth year, we went to the ministry of magic. Who went, why did we go, and how did we get there?"

"It was me, you, Gin, Neville, Harry, and Ron. We rode thestrals, which was terrifying, and we went there because Vol—You-Know-Who tricked Harry into thinking he had Sirius in the Department of Mysteries."

"That's common knowledge," Ginny muttered.

"Not all of it," Luna said, her eyebrows slightly raised.

"What can I do to convince you, Gin?" I pled. "I promise I am who I say I am. You can give me veritaserum, use legilimency, whatever. Ask me anything, and I'll tell you."

"I've got one."

My heart stopped. A third redhead entered the room. There were new scars on his face, but it was _his _face. My whole body went numb as he stopped right in front of me.

"Ron?" I breathed.

"What are you doing in here?" Ginny yelled, furious.

Ron ignored her. He sat on his heels, so our faces were level. He stared into my eyes, and I stared into his. They were just as I remembered, only colder, hardened by the past seven years.

This couldn't be real—he'd been publicly executed, he couldn't be here—

_Please tell me I'm not dreaming._

"May 2nd, 1998," he said, just loud enough so I could hear. "The battle had just started. What happened in the room of requirement?"

I felt tears come to my eyes, and struggled to get the words out. "We'd just destroyed Hufflepuff's cup. Both of us had our arms full of basilisk fangs. You said we'd forgotten about the house-elves, that we didn't want any more Dobbys, we should send them away. I dropped my fangs, I ran to you," my lips quivered, "and I kissed you. And you lifted me into the air and kissed me back."

His breathing quickened. Everyone was completely silent.

I chuckled. "Harry yelled at us, said, 'Oi! There's a war going on here!' And you said, 'I know, mate, so it's now or never, isn't it?'"

Still silence. Ron seemed completely frozen.

"I've relived that moment a thousand times," I whispered. "It was the only thing that kept me going. I—I never thought I'd see you again."

I let out a sob. Tears formed in his eyes, and my own tears rolled down my cheeks. Everyone else, everything else seemed to disappear.

"Untie her," he said in a choked voice.

"Ron, you can't—"

"Ginny, there were only three people in that room! Harry, Hermione, and me!"

I smirked. "You mean Harry, Hermione, and I."

He let out a sound halfway between a sob and a laugh. "Untie her, now!"

George and Luna immediately obeyed. Ginny remained where she was, staring at me. But I wasn't looking at her—my eyes were locked on Ron's.

As soon as I was free, I stood. Ron stood with me and wrapped me in his arms, kissing me like I'd never been kissed before. I melted against him, never wanting the moment to end.

* * *

**A/N: **Looking forward to your reviews! :D


	16. Reunion

**Chapter Sixteen: Reunion**

Ron pulled back, just enough to stare into my eyes. I was completely breathless.

"I thought you were dead," I muttered.

He laughed. "I thought _you _were dead."

I brushed his hair out of his eyes, and traced one of the scars on his cheek.

"I wish I didn't look like this," I sighed. "I wish I looked like me—"

"I don't care," he breathed, and kissed me again. Someone whistled.

"Well, that's certainly not a site I ever thought I'd see."

Ron laughed as he broke off the kiss. I chuckled. "Hello, Seamus."

He raised his eyebrows. "Do we know each other?"

"Seamus, it's Hermione," said Luna.

"_What_?"

"I thought you might have helped George with the fireworks." I grinned. "I hope the two of you do something similar at my real funeral."

Seamus blinked, his mouth half-open. Then, without warning, he ran out of the room.

"IT'S HERMIONE! SHE'S ALIVE! HERMIONE'S ALIVE!"

I saw Ginny purse her lips, but no one else seemed to notice her hesitation. Ron led me out of the small room they'd been keeping me in and into a large chamber that was soon flooded by familiar faces. Some looked skeptical, some looked like they were about to cry. Dennis Creevey practically tackled me in a hug.

Luna ran off to find me some food. George disappeared as well. I didn't let go of Ron for one second, terrified that if I did this would all turn out to be a dream.

Ginny hung back from the crowd, eyeing me like a hawk. I frowned. I didn't blame her at all for being suspicious—I would be too in her position—but it still hurt that she didn't trust me.

Especially since I was about to tell her something she wouldn't dare to believe.

After about half an hour, Ron led me through the crowd to a door on the opposite end of the chamber. We walked into what had been made into a bedroom, and he closed the door behind us.

"How long have you been living down here?" I asked.

"This one? Just over a year. Ginny's getting restless, though. We'll probably pack up and find a new place soon."

I sent him a sideways smile. "I get the feeling she calls the shots."

He laughed. "Yeah. Well, me, her, Luna, and George, really. We work as a team. Ginny's just the most stubborn of the four of us."

"She hasn't changed much, then."

He smirked and leaned down to kiss me again. Just before our lips touched, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," I said, laughing at the annoyed expression on his face.

Luna entered, followed closely by Ginny. "I hope chicken soup's all right. It's what we have left over from dinner."

"Chicken soup sounds lovely," I said. I met Ginny's gaze and half-smiled. She didn't react.

Another knock, and George opened the door before anyone answered. "I hope I'm invited to the party?"

Angelina Johnson walked in behind him, carrying a small boy on her hip. The boy stared at me.

"She looks different than the Aunt Hermy in the pictures," he whispered to Angelina.

"That's because she's in disguise," Angelina whispered back.

"Hermione," George said, beaming, "I'd like you to meet my son, Fred."

My lips split into a wide smile. Still holding Ron's hand, I stepped forward.

"Hello, Fred. How old are you?"

He glanced at his mother and waited for her to nod before answering me. "Five."

"They'll have time to 'bond' later," Ginny said before I could respond. "Angelina, could you give us the room?"

Both of Fred's parents shot Ginny disapproving looks, but Angelina obediently turned toward the door.

"Say goodbye, Freddie."

"Mum, Aunt Ginny has her mad face on again."

Angelina sighed. "Yes, she does."

Ginny's frown deepened as the door closed behind them. I bit my lip, but knew better than to say anything. She turned around.

"All right, start explaining."

"It's complicated."

"Start with who gave you the Polyjuice potion, and how they got it past the guards."

"Well, I don't know how he smuggled it in, or how he got his hands on keys to my cell, but Draco Malfoy's the one that got me out."

Everyone stared at me. Even Ron looked suspicious.

"Draco Malfoy?" George scoffed. "Why would he do that?"

I sighed. "I'm just beginning to understand that myself. He _said _he'd changed—I'm not so sure."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Okay, let's say you're telling the truth. Who's body was burned at your funeral?"

"It's obvious, isn't it?" Luna said, a frown on her face. "She still looks like Astoria Greengrass, so it must have been Astoria's body the dementors found."

"Luna's right. Dra—Malfoy switched us."

Ginny was looking more skeptical by the minute. "Malfoy killed his fiancée and snuck you out of Azkaban in her place?"

"Believe me, I know how crazy it sounds!" I said, exasperated. "But it's not nearly as crazy as what I'm about to tell you."

"Oh, and what would that be?"

I hid a smile. "Harry's alive."

The room filled with gasps. Ginny's face turned white.

"_What_?"

"Is that possible?"

"You've seen him?" breathed Ron.

"Yes!" I gazed up at him. "I thought it was too good to be true, too, until Malfoy took me there—"

"Okay, what does he have to do with any of this?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but was cut off.

"Stop!"

We all turned to face Ginny. She was breathing so heavily her whole body heaved up and down.

"This is ludicrous." Her fiery eyes stared me down. "If Harry was alive, we wouldn't be in this mess. 'The Emperor' would be defeated, we wouldn't be living in hiding, Fred wouldn't be growing up a fugitive—"

"He's been in a coma," I said gently. "He still is."

She shook her head. "I don't believe you."

"I've _seen _him, Gin!"

"_Don't call me that!_" she yelled. Her whole body shook as she ran out of the room.

Luna sighed. "I'll go see if I can calm her down."

"Don't tell anyone else about Harry," I said quickly. "The less people that know, the better."

She nodded and left. It was just me, Ron, and George. After about a minute of silence, George cleared his throat.

"Well, I'll leave you two alone now." He said with a wink.

I chuckled as he left. Ron brushed my hair behind my ear, and I closed my eyes.

"I can't believe we're together again after all these years," he said.

"What have you been doing all this time?"

"Little things here and there to derail 'the Emperor's' attempts to take over the world." He sighed. "As I'm sure you noticed, we haven't had a ton of success."

I opened my eyes looked up at him. There was so much I wanted to ask him, but I didn't want to ruin the moment.

He shook his head at me, smirking. "Even in this body, I can tell when you want to say something and won't."

I tried to smile, but couldn't. He waited patiently until I was ready to speak.

"Why didn't you come for me?" I whispered.

His smirk disappeared. "I did. Three times. We were about to try a fourth time when we heard that you'd—" He shook his head and cupped my chin in his hand. "Don't you _ever _think for I forgot about you for one second."

My eyes welled up with tears again, but I held them in and kissed him instead. He held me tightly, and I sighed against his lips.

"So what happened?" I said when we parted. "When you tried?"

He frowned and walked over to the bed, motioning for me to sit next to him. I did, and curled up against his chest. He held me close and we laid back.

"The first time we were lucky. It was me, Ginny, George, and Luna. Obviously, we all got out safe, but we didn't make it very far to begin with. We didn't have you to help with the planning."

I smiled. He ran his fingers through my hair.

"The second time went a little better. Charlie had a semi-trained dragon, and me and him rode it, hoping to break you out that way."

I grinned. "I wonder who's idea that was."

He chuckled. "I'll admit, our experience at Gringgotts was inspiring."

"So what happened?"

"This happened." He pointed to the scars on his face. "The dementors frightened the dragon. We barely managed to make it back to shore before he attacked us."

"And the third time?"

He was very quiet for a moment. "The third time was the worst. We took a larger group, hoping there would be strength in numbers." He shook his head. "Five people got left behind."

"Who?" I asked hesitantly.

"Oliver Wood, Hannah Abbott, Terry Boot, Dean, and Percy."

My heart dropped. "Do you know what happened to them?" I said in a small voice.

He took a minute to answer. "They were all kissed."

I closed my eyes. I knew it wasn't my fault, but somehow it felt like it was. Ron held me tighter.

"What's important right now," he whispered in my ear, "is that I will never, ever leave your side again."

I frowned and slowly sat up. "Actually, I can't stay. I have to leave in a week."

Ron sat up as well. "What? Why?"

"I'm Astoria now, remember?"

"Who says you have to stay Astoria?"

"It would look suspicious if I just vanished," I sighed. "And as odd as it sounds, the Dark Lord actually trusts me. If I keep up with this, we have a real shot at getting into his inner circle."

"Keep up with what? Pretending to be engaged to Malfoy?"

"You're not jealous, are you?" I joked.

"Of Malfoy? No. But I'm not letting you go back there alone."

"What, you want to take Polyjuice yourself?" I gripped his hand and looked into his eyes. "I'm not letting you get anywhere near those people."

He smirked. "Oh, I have a better idea than Polyjuice."

Suddenly, Ron was gone. In his place was a large dog with red fur, but its eyes were still the same bright blue as Ron's.

I gasped. "You learned to—how did you—?"

He barked, put his forepaws on my shoulders, and pushed me down on the bed as he changed back into himself. He was smirking, that signature smirk I loved so much.

"I figured if Peter Pettigrew could learn how to do it, it shouldn't be too hard for me. Besides, I'm supposed to be a dead man—what better way to hide in plain site?"

Speechless, I threw my arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of me. He laughed before wrapping me in his arms and bringing his lips to mine.

* * *

**A/N: **Hope you're still enjoying! I'll have the next chapter up ASAP! Please review!


	17. Acceptance

**Chapter Seventeen: Acceptance**

I woke up wrapped in a strong embrace. For a moment, I feared everything from the day before had been a dream, that I was back at Malfoy Manor, and that it was Draco and not Ron holding me. But all my fears melted away when I heard his voice.

"Good morning, 'Mione," he whispered in my ear, then kissed my neck.

A smile spread across my face and I turned in his arms so we were facing each other. I ran my fingers through his hair.

"Good morning, Ron," I whispered back.

For a long time, we just lay there, staring into each other's eyes. Every breath, every moment was more perfect than the last. It wasn't until we heard movement outside the bedroom door that we decided it was time to get up.

I'd borrowed one of Luna's nightgowns the night before, but since I didn't have my suitcase with me, I dressed in the same clothes as the day before, with much difficulty—Ron kept spontaneously hugging and kissing me. It seemed like nothing could possibly wipe the smile off my face.

When we were finally dressed, we stepped out into the main chamber. Everyone was gathering for breakfast. I was immediately surrounded and bombarded with questions. I answered them, greeted old friends for the second time, laughed with them.

_This is too good to be true._

The room grew considerably quieter when Ginny walked in. She sat down without a word and grabbed some eggs. Everyone could tell from her expression that she didn't want to be spoken to. My smile faltered.

Ron squeezed my hand. "She'll come around," he whispered, sending me an encouraging smile.

"I hope so," I sighed.

Luna came out soon after Ginny, and frowned when she saw me. "Oh dear! You're wearing the same clothes! I'll go fetch you something—"

"No, it's all right, Luna," I said. "Thank you, but I actually have a suitcase I left in the woods. I was planning on fetching it this morning."

"How will you get back?"

"Well, you could just tell me our location, and how to get back—"

"_Absolutely _not!"

Ginny stood, making everyone jump. "If anyone tells this woman where we are, I will personally lock them up and throw away the key!"

Everyone stared at her.

"Fair enough," I said quietly. "Then someone will have to escort me."

Ron put his arm around my shoulders and kissed my forehead. "It would be my pleasure."

"No," Ginny said firmly. "_You_ are not leaving this cave."

"What? It's not like anyone will know it's me! I'll be a dog!"

"But in your animagus form, you can't apparate," I said. "I have to agree with Ginny on this one." I looked up at her, forcing a smile. "Why don't you take me?"

She folded her arms. You could have cut the tension in the air with a knife.

"Fine," she finally said, breaking the silence. "We leave in one hour. _No one _steps out of this cave until we're back."

She stomped back into her room, leaving her uneaten eggs.

"Yes, Mum," Ron and George muttered at the same time. I suppressed a laugh.

The hour went by quickly. Ginny didn't come out of her room until it was time to leave. When she did, she walked straight up to me, her eyes narrow.

"You try anything," she hissed, "and I will kill you on the spot, understand?"

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

Her eyes narrowed even more, but she didn't say another word. I kissed Ron swiftly and followed her out of the cave.

We walked out onto the ledge of a seaside cliff. I had to pause for a moment to take in the view—it was absolutely stunning. After we'd walked for about ten minutes, she grabbed my arm and disapparated without warning. We were back at the Burrow.

"All right, where's your suitcase?"

"I don't actually know the location, but I can apparate there."

She scoffed. "Right. Like I'm going to blindly let you apparate—"

She let out a grunt and fell to her knees. I spun around. Amycus Carrow was running toward us, a gleeful look on his face. He stopped in his tracks when he saw me.

"Astoria?"

"_Stupefy!_" I yelled.

He went flying and landed hard on the ruins of the Burrow. Ginny struggled to her feet.

"We have to get out of here—there could be more of them."

"No! He can't remember he saw me with you!"

I ran over to him, ignoring Ginny's yells. My spell hadn't quite knocked him unconscious—this blasted wand didn't want to obey me.

"Ginny, give me your wand!"

"Are you _crazy_?"

I spun around. "Look, I know you're having a hard time accepting I am who I say I am, and that's fine, but for the moment I need you to trust me! We both know I'm better at memory charms, and Astoria's wand won't work for me, so _hand it over!_"

After a moment of hesitation, she tossed it. Her expression told me she almost immediately regretted the decision. I caught it and in one move spun around and pointed it at Carrow. He was struggling to open his eyes.

"_Obliviate!_"

His whole body relaxed. I smirked.

_Seven years in Azkaban, and you've still got it._

"Okay, now give it back!" Ginny yelled.

I turned and walked toward her. My walk turned into a run as I heard "popping" sounds in the distance. Instead of handing her her wand, I grabbed her arm and apparated before she could resist.

We landed in the forest, right next to my suitcase. I immediately released Ginny and handed her her wand. She took it, her expression unreadable. I sat on the ground and let out a deep breath, holding in a smile.

"_Merlin_, I've missed magic," I muttered.

Ginny gazed at me a minute before speaking softly. "How do I know you didn't set that trap?"

"Oh for goodness sake, Gin!" I sighed. "If I set the trap, why would I have gotten you out of it? Why would I have wiped Carrow's memory, and why would I have needed your wand to do it?" I looked at Astoria's wand in my hand with a scowl. "This thing is useless. I expect it to turn on me and stun me half the time, even when I try the simplest of spells. My disguise may fool everyone else, but not this wand."

I tossed it on the ground. Ginny hesitated before sitting next to me.

"Let's say I believe you, and I'm not saying I do—" Her voice grew very quiet. "Where's Harry?"

I looked sideways at her, then back at the ground. "In a hospital in States."

"America?"

I nodded. "Somewhere in California."

"Where?"

"That's all I know, really. Malfoy wouldn't tell me where we were going until we got there. He said it was for my own protection, and Harry's."

She hesitated again. "How did he—I mean, was he—how did he look?" she blurted out.

I turned to face her. She waited earnestly for my answer, her eyes filled with hope that she hardly dared to have.

"He looked great, Gin," I breathed, a small smile forming on my lips. "Healthy, peaceful."

She took a deep breath, and I saw the glimmer of hope flicker, threatening to go out. "But even if what you say is true, he's been in a coma for seven years—"

"And he survived the killing curse _twice_, and you and I both know he's survived much more than that." I took her hand, and couldn't help but laugh. "I don't know how he got so lucky, but I believe in him."

She stared at me for a moment, trying to decide how to feel. Finally, her lips twitched into a smile.

"I believe in him, too," she whispered, then threw her arms around me.

* * *

**A/N: WOW! **I woke up this morning to **twelve **new reviews and over **600 **views, and it's not even 7:00AM yet! I am incredibly humbled by the amount of support I'm getting with this story! I hope you all continue to read and review, but more than that I hope I don't let you down!


	18. Coins

**Chapter Eighteen: Coins**

Ginny and I were laughing when we reentered the cave. Ron grinned when he saw us.

"Friends again? What happened?"

I shrugged as I set down my suitcase. "We bonded over fighting Death Eaters, as usual."

His smile faltered. "Death Eaters?"

Ginny's expression grew serious once more. She stood on top of a bench and spoke at the top of her lungs.

"Listen up, everyone—the Burrow's been compromised. It's no longer a safe spot. Grimmauld Place will now be number two."

I furrowed my eyebrows and looked up at Ron. "Number two? What is she talking about?"

Ginny hopped down from the bench and walked over to me. She reached into her pocket, pulled out something, and tossed it to me. I examined the object in my hand—at first glance, it looked like a regular galleon, but I knew better.

"The DA coins," I said, feeling a flood of nostalgia. "You all kept these?"

"Neville managed to smuggle the master one out to me before—well, I'm sure you've heard." She pulled another one out of her pocket. "We decided to assign our locations numbers, so we could add a place at the end. One is home base, here at the moment. Two was the Burrow, now it's Grimmauld Place."

"Are there any others?"

She nodded. "Three is Hogwarts. Four is the old Ministry, known better now as the Emperor's headquarters. And five is his palace."

I raised my eyebrows. "Those sound like dangerous places to meet."

"We haven't used them yet, and we don't plan to until we're ready to attack, but it's good to be prepared." She eyed me for a moment. "I'm thinking it might be good to add Malfoy Manor to the list too, if the two of you are really going back there."

"We are."

Ron looked between his sister and me. "I wasn't sure you'd be okay with that plan," he finally said.

Ginny sighed. "I figured I wouldn't be able to stop you anyway. We'll add the manor as number six," she continued, refocusing her attention on me. "We also decided we should have multiple masters, just in case, and so we could send messages to each other if we were separated. It took us a while to figure out without you around, but Luna pulled through."

"So who has the masters?"

"George, Luna, Ron, me," she sent me a sideways smile, "and now you."

I grinned and wrapped her in a tight hug. She laughed and hugged me back.

"Hey! I thought that was supposed to be mine!" Seamus stood and folded his arms, but he was still smiling.

"Here, Seamus." Ron took his out and flipped it to him. "Hermione and I will be together, so I won't need one."

Ginny frowned. "What if you get separated?"

"I'm not letting her out of my sight for one minute," Ron said, wrapping his arms around my waist.

Ginny rolled her eyes, but I glimpsed a smile.

"So what do you guys have in the works right now?" I asked. "Anything I can help with while I'm here?"

"Well, we're still waiting on some intel before our next strike," said Ginny. "You don't happen to know the rounds of the guards at the old Ministry, do you?"

"I haven't been there since I got out of Azkaban, but I bet I could find out."

Ginny shook her head. "We already have someone who works there on our side, but he's late getting back to us. If we don't hear from him by the end of the week, then you can check it out."

She turned and went into her room. Ron rested his chin on my shoulder.

"See. I told you she'd come around."

I smirked. "All it took was a few Death Eaters."

"Did they see you?"

"Amycus Carrow did, but I wiped his memory."

I could almost feel him smile. "Same old Hermione."

"Speaking of memory charms," I pulled out of his embrace and turned to face him, "I heard some rumors—about my parents—"

Ron sighed. "We don't know, Herm. We've heard the rumors too. I'm sorry to say they're probably true."

I forced a small smile. "It's not your fault. I knew it was too much to hope to get everyone back. I just—I just hope they didn't suffer."

He hugged me again. After I took a few deep breaths, we both sat down for lunch. Fred ran over and sat in my lap, taking me by surprise. Angelina tried to apologize and take him away, but I told her it was all right. I couldn't help but smile when I looked at the boy—he was proof that there was still good in the world, even with Voldemort in control.

"Did you know Uncle Harry?" he asked after a while.

"Yes, I did."

"Was he a hero?"

"Oh, he most definitely was."

He looked at me with a confused expression. "Then why did he lose?"

"He hasn't lost," I whispered in his ear. "Not yet."

His face lit up, and he ran over to his dad. I smiled as I watched George play with him.

"Do you think that will be us one day?" I muttered to Ron.

He followed my gaze and grinned. "Well, we have a pretty good track record for cheating death, so I'd bet on it."

"How did you do that, by the way?" I said, turning in my seat to face him. "Malfoy told me you were publicly executed."

"_That_ was a fun one," Seamus chimed in, grinning.

"For _you_, maybe." Ron rolled his eyes. "Seamus snuck into the crowd and stood right behind the executioner."

"You-Know-Who didn't plan on killing you himself?"

Ron shook his head. "The whole reason he held my execution was to draw Ginny out of hiding. The executions were held in the Quidditch stadium. He was sitting above the whole crowd, looking for her or anyone else who might come to save me."

I looked at Seamus. "Okay, so how'd you do it?"

"First, the lovely Luna cast a disillusionment charm on me," he said, winking at her, "then I snuck in the back way. There were spells all around the main entrance to reveal enchantments, but not the back."

"We learned that the hard way at Neville's execution," Luna said softly.

There was a moment of silence, then Seamus went on. "Everyone in the crowd was outraged, so we decided to use that to our advantage and start a riot. Right after the executioner cast the killing curse, I started blowing things up, and the crowd went crazy, which gave me the window to grab Ron and disillusion him, too."

"Wait—you said 'after' the curse was cast."

"He forgot to mention when right before the Death Eater finished the curse, _he _hit me with a knockback jinx." Ron didn't look amused. "He cut it a little closer than I would have liked."

"It had to look like you died, mate!"

"So you're telling me," I leaned forward, one eyebrow raised, "that you, Seamus Finnigan, single-handedly rescued Ron Weasley at his public execution held by the Dark Lord?"

Seamus blinked. "No, not single-handedly. Luna and Dean were blowing things up too."

I shook my head. "That shouldn't have worked."

"But it did," he said with a grin. "Never underestimate the power of explosions."

"I mean you never should have made it in there alive, let alone out."

Seamus shrugged. "It's a big stadium."

I let the subject drop. Still, it didn't make sense. The Dark Lord certainly would have had more security around the Quidditch field than that...

"Believe me, I think it's odd too," Ron whispered in my ear, "but I've decided just to be grateful I'm still alive."

I leaned my head on his shoulder. "I'm grateful for that, too."

He grinned. "You know, the Daily Prophet just did a spread on how your funeral marked the final end to the 'Golden Trio.' Imagine what a headline it'll make when they find out we're all alive."

I couldn't hold back a smile. "You-Know-Who won't even see us coming."

Now all we needed was for Harry to wake up.

* * *

**A/N: **I know many of you are anxious to see Draco again, and I promise he'll be back soon! Just answering some questions and setting up for future events :) Hope you're still enjoying, and thanks so much for the unbelievable support!


	19. Books

**Chapter Nineteen: Books**

The next four days passed in what seemed like no time at all. I asked everyone not to tell me too much about their upcoming plans, in the event that my mind was read by the Dark Lord. Because of that, I spent some of my time babysitting Fred while his parents helped with the plotting (Angelina was ecstatic). It was strange, not being in the middle of things, but I was going to be too close to Voldemort to be taking chances.

I also continued practicing my occlumency. Draco had been right when he said the Dark Lord could have broken down my walls in a second—I was just lucky he didn't find the need to. Ginny had been teaching herself occlumency over the past seven years, and though she couldn't use legilimency to help me practice, she taught me some tricks and techniques that boosted my confidence.

I sighed to myself as I tucked Fred into bed on my last night. Even though I was progressing, I still had a long way to go if I really wanted to keep my mind safe. Again, I had to grudgingly admit that Draco had been right to keep me partially in the dark.

But that didn't mean it was right for him to simply kill whoever threatened him.

I was _not _looking forward to seeing him tomorrow.

"Aunt Hermy?" Fred muttered, interrupting my train of thought.

"Yes?"

"Will you read me a bedtime story?"

I smiled and sat at the foot of his bed. "Sure. Do you have a book?"

"Yep! Mummy keeps it under her bed!"

I felt under Angelina and George's bed until I felt something. When I pulled the book out from the darkness, I froze.

"'The Tales of Beedle the Bard,'" I whispered to myself.

"Read the one about the three brothers!" said Fred eagerly.

I knew exactly what he was talking about, and immediately opened it up to the first page of the Deathly Hallows story. The symbol of the Hallows was at the top of the page, just like I remembered it.

This was the same book Dumbledore left me.

My mind was miles away as I read Fred the story. This book, and so many others, had been in my bag, the one I left in the great hall when Voldemort announced Harry was dead.

When the story was over, I kissed Fred goodnight, left the book on George and Angelina's bed, and hurried out of the room. The door to Ron's bedroom was still closed, so I assumed they were still meeting, but I walked in anyway.

"What happened to my bag?"

Everyone jumped and stared at me.

"Your bag?" Ginny asked, baffled.

"Yes, my beaded handbag, the one with the extension charm."

"Oh! I forgot that was yours!" said Luna. "Do you want it back?"

"No, you can keep it. But there's a book in there I could use, or at least there was—_Advanced Concealment and Cloaking Charms._"

She hopped off the bed and smiled. "Oh, yes. That one's been particularly useful. I'll get it for you. Do you mind me asking what you're planning to do with it?"

I followed her out of Ron's room to the one she was sharing with Ginny. "Well, Dra—Malfoy had this secret room in his gardens that was undetectable. It was the only place we could speak freely while at the manor, but I had to tell the Emperor about it to gain his trust. I was hoping I could make another place like it, but I haven't been finding what I need in the manor's library—it's all mostly books on dark magic."

Luna's smile widened. "In that case, I think I have another book that would interest you as well."

She retrieved the handbag from under her pillow, opened it, and started rummaging through. After a minute, she produced the book I'd asked for, and then another one. I picked up the second book and read the cover.

"_Theories on Multi-Dimensional Travel_." I looked up, stunned. "Where did you get this? I've never seen it before."

"I took a few things from the library before leaving Hogwarts," she said matter-of-factly. "Just whatever was laying out. I think this book explains how to do exactly what you just described."

I wrapped her in a tight hug. She seemed surprised, but hugged me back all the same.

When Ginny, George, Angelina, Seamus, and Ron finally emerged from Ron's room, I was already buried in the books pages. They all laughed, and I looked up.

"What?"

"It's nice to see Hermione Granger back in her natural habitat," Seamus said with a wink.

Ginny shook her head, smiling. "If I wasn't already convinced it was you, I would be now."

I rolled my eyes at them. They only laughed more.

Ron sat next to me and read over my shoulder. He raised his eyebrows.

"You think you can actually do this?"

"Not with Astoria's wand—it hates me—but maybe with Draco's."

"Since when do you call him Draco?"

I hesitated. "Just—practicing. For when I'm Astoria."

Ron was quiet for a moment. "Do you really have to pretend to be engaged to him?"

"If you don't want me to get killed, yes."

"You could just stay here, you know."

I shut the book. "Ron, we've been through this. The Emperor already suspects Draco of being a traitor. If I—if _Astoria _went missing, he'd suspect him even more. And if something happens to Draco—"

"We could lose Harry, I know." Ron sighed. "I just don't like the idea of seeing you—_with _him. I mean, I know it would never really happen, but still."

I sent him a weak smile and reopened my book, suddenly uncomfortable. I hadn't told Ron that I kissed Draco, and I didn't intend to. It happened when I was feeling incredibly emotionally vulnerable—I'd been alone in Azkaban for seven years, I'd just seen Harry, and I'd been struggling with the fact that most of the people I loved the most were dead, including Ron. What happened was perfectly understandable, but I was worried Ron wouldn't see it that way.

And that didn't stop me from feeling guilty.

* * *

**A/N: **So I know that one was short, but I promised another chapter today, and here it is! And yes, Draco will be back in chapter twenty, so you'll see him tomorrow (maybe tonight depending on what my muses have in store :P ). Thank you all! You are amazing :)


	20. Billy

**Chapter Twenty: Billy**

It was hard to leave the next morning. I didn't want to go, but I knew it was our best chance at actually winning this. Fred wouldn't let go of my legs for the longest time—his father had to pry him off me.

George handed Fred to Angelina before facing me. "I know you said you want fireworks at your real funeral, but I don't plan on attending it until we're all much, much older. Be safe."

"Fair enough," I said with a smirk before hugging him. "I will."

Seamus playfully punched me in arm instead of hugging me. "Hopefully next time we see you, you look a little less like a Slytherin," he said with a grin.

I laughed. "Hopefully."

Luna ran up and embraced me without saying a word. She didn't have to—her smile said it all.

Ginny was the last to say goodbye. She sent me a sideways smile as she approached.

"I hope you can forgive me," she said.

I raised an eyebrow playfully. "Forgive you? For being cautious and suspecting me? I'd expect nothing less." My expression grew serious. "It's because of you everyone in this cave has stayed alive so long. Harry will be so proud when he hears everything you've done."

Her smile faltered. "If."

I pulled her into a tight embrace. "When," I whispered.

Ron patted my shoulder. "Time to head out, Miss Greengrass."

I reluctantly released Ginny. I thought I saw tears forming in her eyes, but they were gone as soon as I noticed them. She pulled out her coin.

"Don't forget—if you ever get in trouble—"

"Same to you." I hugged her again before picking up my suitcase and walking out with Ron.

"All right, Boy," I said when we were far enough away from the cave to apparate, "time to put your new collar on."

Ron laughed. "Okay, I just need to do one thing first."

"What's that?"

He smirked, pulled me close, and kissed me. I laughed when he pulled away. He was smiling, but he looked surprisingly serious.

"I love you," he said quietly.

My heart leapt. "I love you too."

He took a deep breath, gave me one last short kiss, and transformed. I reached into the top pocket of my suitcase and found the collar Luna got for us. When I saw it, I burst into laughter. Ron whined.

"Maroon! How appropriate!"

I continued laughing as I put it on. Ron scratched at it and barked. I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, get over it. Astoria wouldn't let her dog run around without a collar."

I reached down and scratched behind his ear. He closed his eyes, wagged his tail, and let out a sound that resembled a sigh.

Chuckling to myself, I wrapped an arm around him and apparated. We appeared right in front of the manor gates. They opened as I approached.

"Come on, Boy!" I said in my best dog-voice. I thought I saw Ron shake his head.

I walked through the front door without a second thought and ran straight into Lord and Lady Greengrass.

"Mum! Dad!"

Lord Greengrass took a step back, eyeing Ron with disgust. "What is that thing doing in this house?"

"What are_ you_ doing in this house?" I said with a frown. "I thought you'd have gone home by now."

"We're leaving tomorrow, Dear," Lady Greengrass said. She too was staring at Ron.

"This _thing _is my new dog," I said in response to Lord Greengrass, patting Ron's head. "I got him this morning."

"Draco didn't mention that you got a dog."

"Oh, he's back already? Is he upstairs?" I tried to walk past them.

Lady Greengrass cleared her throat. "Astoria, Dear, what your father means to say is _why _did you get a dog?"

I shrugged. "We were walking down the street, we saw an animal shelter, and Draco told me I could get a dog if I wanted before he went to finish running errands. Apparently his errands were quicker than I thought."

"But why—"

I sighed. "It was Draco's idea, I went along with it to make him happy, okay? Besides, I kind of like him."

Lord Greengrass raised his eyebrows. "Draco?"

"The _dog_." I rolled my eyes. "Honestly, Dad."

"Well, what's his name?" Lady Greengrass said tentatively.

I hid a smirk. "Billy." _Short for Bilius._

Ron's ears drooped.

"Am I done being interrogated now? I should really get upstairs in case he's trying to hide something."

"Fine," Lord Greengrass said in his gruff voice. "Go."

"Come on, Billy! Follow me!" I said as I turned and ran. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ron's ears droop even lower. I resisted the urge to laugh.

I was surprised by how easy it was for me to find the bedroom. I opened the door, and Ron went in first. Something clattered to the ground.

"What the—?"

Draco was standing halfway between the bed, where his suitcase lay open, and the closet, holding a pair of pants. Ron had stopped right in front of him and was growling. I sighed inwardly and walked over to him.

"No! Bad dog! Sit!"

Ron reluctantly stopped growling and sat, but didn't take his eyes off Malfoy.

Draco took a breath. "Darling, what is this?"

"It was your idea, remember? When we passed that shelter this morning, you told me I could go in and get a dog if I found one I liked. His name is Billy."

"I must have forgot," Draco muttered.

I put on a pout. "You're not going to make me get rid of him, are you?"

He hesitated. "No—of course not."

I smiled. "Good."

I half-skipped over to him and kissed him on the cheek. Ron growled again.

"Oh, shush, you!"

"I don't think he likes me very much," Draco said as he cautiously continued to move toward the closet.

"He'll behave. Won't you, Boy?" I narrowed my eyes at Ron. I could have sworn I saw him roll his.

"Your parents are still here," said Draco as he opened the closet and stepped inside.

"I know, I saw them," I said, acting exasperated. "I'm sorry. They're so—over-protective."

"Daphne's still here too. I told her she could stay a few more days. She wanted to talk to you about maid of honor stuff. I hope that's all right."

"That's perfect, actually," I said after a moment. With everything that had happened in the past week, I'd forgotten that I actually asked Daphne to be the maid of honor. Suddenly, I felt guilty. I still wanted to help her, to be a good sister to her while I could, but I was more determined than ever to get back to my old self as soon as possible.

Draco came out of the closet and grabbed more clothes from his suitcase, all the while watching Ron out of the corner of his eye. "The Emperor's sending over a wedding planner for lunch."

"Wonderful! I can't wait."

Draco stopped on his third trip between the suitcase and the closet. "What happened to his face?"

"Who's?"

"The dog's—Billy's."

I turned around and looked at Ron. I hadn't noticed before, but the there were faint vertical scars on his face, just like the dragon scars he had.

I shrugged and turned back to my suitcase. "He must have gotten in a fight."

Draco shook his head. "I just can't believe you'd choose that dog out of all of them."

Ron barred his teeth. I sighed and stepped in between them.

"Do I really have to play referee between you two?" I said. "Both of you, just calm down!"

They both reluctantly obeyed. Draco returned to the closet. I glared at Ron.

"Don't make me send you out on the street."

He put his tail between his legs and hung his head.

"I'm not really mad at you," I sighed, kneeling on the ground next to him and scratching under his chin. "You just need to be nice to him, okay?"

He licked my hand in response. I smiled.

Draco stared at me from the closet door. "You do realize he's a dog, right? He can't understand you."

"You'd be surprised what dogs can and can't understand," I said with a chuckle.

We didn't quite finish unpacking before the wedding planner arrived. She as dressed in fine robes and had with her the largest collection of binders I'd ever seen. We sat down in the study to look over some of them, Draco and I on the couch and the wedding planner in the chair across the coffee table. Draco made a move to hold my hand, but Ron jumped on my lap and snapped at him.

"Stori!" yelled Draco.

The wedding planner raised her eyebrows. "Your dog doesn't like your fiancé, Miss Greengrass?"

"He's new," I sighed, this time really angry. I glared at Ron as I set him on the ground.

"One more false move, and you're going outside, understand?"

Ron whined, but laid on the ground at my feet. I could feel him twitch when Malfoy put his arm around me, but he didn't try to bite his hand off this time.

I wasn't listening to what the wedding planner was saying. All I was thinking about was how this was a huge mistake.

* * *

**A/N: **Draco's back! And more fun (and drama) to come in the next chapter. Keep reading and reviewing!


	21. Reading

**Chapter Twenty-One: Reading**

I glared at Astoria's wand in my hand. "_You _are useless," I muttered.

For the past two hours, I'd been trying to get started on making our secret room, but Astoria's wand wouldn't hear of it. Every spell I tried to cast was feeble, not near strong enough to do what we needed. Laying on my stomach on the bed, I turned the pages of the book in front of me, looking for something else that might work. If I had my _own _wand, I'd probably be finished by now.

Ron barked and licked the hand that was hanging off the side of the bed. I smiled at him.

"I'm not giving up. Just—frustrated."

The doorknob turned. I didn't pay much attention—I assumed it would be Draco. Only when Ron barked did I look up, and I jumped slightly.

"Daph!" I shut the book and sat up on the bed. "How are you?"

"I'm all right." She looked curiously at Ron. "How was Italy?"

"Marvelous, of course," I said with a smile. "We should go together some time, just you and me."

Now her curious gaze was directed towards me. "What kind of game are you playing, Stori? You'd rather die than go on a trip with me."

"You have every reason to think that," I sighed, "but lately I've been taking a look at my priorities. I'm trying to change, Daph."

"I see that." She looked at Ron again. "Since when are you a dog person?"

"I'm not," I laughed. "Always a cat person. But this guy stole my heart."

I scratched behind his ear. He wagged his tail.

Daphne crossed the room and sat next to me on the bed. She looked like she was going to ask another question about Ron, but paused when she saw the book.

"What is this?" she said, grabbing it.

I tried to take it back, but my reflexes were too slow.

"_Advanced Concealment and Cloaking Charms?_" She snorted as she flipped through the pages. "What are _you _doing with a book with the word 'advanced' in the title?"

I put on a pout. "You know, I may still be your little sister, but I am twenty-three now."

She laughed. "Okay, what are you trying to do? Maybe I can help."

_What am I trying to do_? I glanced around the room. My eyes landed on Ron, and I found my answer.

"I'm trying to cover up his horrible scars," I said, gesturing to Ron. "So I thought, a concealment charm—"

Daphne shook her head and set the book down. "No, I know exactly the spell you want. Remember when I had all that horrible acne? Still do. I just cover it up."

"I don't know if that spell will work on a dog."

"It should." She pulled out her wand and pointed it at Ron. He backed up slightly. A white light shot out of it and hit him in the face. He whined and shook his head, but nothing had changed—the scars were still there.

She frowned. "That should have worked."

I didn't say anything. I knew exactly why it didn't work. That spell was meant to cover up scars, yes, but the marks on Ron's face as a dog weren't scars—they were the distinguishing markings of his animagus.

"Well, thanks for trying," I said with a half-smile.

She stood. "I'll go to the library and see if I find anything useful. I'll just take this back with me—"

I put my hand on the book. "Actually, I rented it from a bookshop," I blurted out, "so I'll just hold on to it for now."

She stared at me a minute, then laughed. "_You _went into a bookshop? Merlin, you really are trying to change."

I let out a sigh of relief as she walked out, but couldn't help but smile a little as well. Ron whined and pawed at his face. I laughed.

"You know I love you with or without your scars," I said sweetly. He stood on his hind legs, put his paws on the bed, and licked my face. I laughed again.

After a few more minutes of trying (and failing) to make headway with Astoria's wand, I set the book on my nightstand and left the room. As I came down the stairs, Draco came out of the study, followed by Blaise Zabini. He grinned at me. I smiled back, trying not to look annoyed.

"You're just in time for dinner," said Draco.

"Actually, I was going to take Billy for a quick walk around the gardens. I'll eat when I get back."

"Perfect, then you can walk me out," said Zabini. His grin sent a shiver down my spine.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," I said to Draco and kissed his cheek. Ron didn't look pleased, but he didn't growl this time.

Zabini and I walked out the front door together. I turned right to head toward the gardens, and was surprised (and a bit alarmed) when he turned right as well.

"I thought you were leaving," I said, trying not to sound too eager.

He smirked. "And skip the opportunity to be alone with you? Not a chance."

Suddenly, he pushed me up against the wall and began snogging me. Before I even had a chance to react, it ended—Ron growled and jumped on him, and he fell to the ground.

"What—?"

"He probably thought you were attacking me," I said, catching my breath. "He's very protective."

Zabini scowled at him and drew his wand. "I'll teach this dog to behave."

"No!" I knelt on the ground and put my arm around Ron. Slowly he started to calm down. "He's just a dog, he doesn't know any better. Besides, it's probably a good thing—what if someone had seen us?"

Zabini groaned as he stood. "I'm _tired _of waiting. I want you to ditch Draco already and come back to me."

"Believe me, I want that more than anything," I said, hoping I sounded convincing. "Is there any news? Anything I can use to dig up some dirt?"

He shrugged, obviously resisting the urge to curse Ron. "The Emperor finally took my advice and put spells around the Weasley's old excuse for a house. An alarm was triggered about a week ago, and we sent Carrow to patrol. The next day, another alarm was triggered and we found him with his memory wiped. We must have missed them by seconds."

I put on a frown. "How is Carrow?"

"He can't even remember his name! If I hadn't been at the funeral myself, I would've sworn it was Granger."

I looked genuinely surprised. I'd only meant to wipe a day from his memory, not his whole life. I guess I forgot how powerful that spell was—and what it was like to use a wand that obeyed me.

"Sounds like someone tipped them off about the patrol," I said, shaking it off. "How else would they have gotten out of there so quickly?"

Zabini shrugged. "Carrow can be careless."

"But he's a competent wizard." I stood. "I can't imagine they would have gotten to him unless he was taken off-guard, and I can't see that happening without the rebels knowing beforehand he was going to be there."

_Or him seeing someone he didn't expect_, I thought.

Zabini eyed me thoughtfully. "I'll look into it. You should look into Draco's alibi as well. Did you ever get separated in Italy?"

"Never for more than a couple minutes. I stuck to him like a permanent sticking charm."

"Well, look into it anyway. Maybe he sent some kind of note while you had your back turned."

I folded my arms. "I resent the implication."

Zabini smirked. "Oh, don't be that way, sweetheart. You know I think you're the most brilliant witch who ever lived."

I felt like I was going to barf.

He kissed me cheek, eyeing Ron as he did so, and left. I sighed and knelt down next to Ron again.

"Thanks for that," I whispered in his ear. He barked and wagged his tail.

We did a quick loop around the gardens before returning to the house. Draco, Daphne, and Lord and Lady Greengrass were all already sitting down for dinner. Draco stood as I entered.

"Darling, I love you, but your dog isn't allowed in the dining room."

Ron whined. I sighed.

"I'll take him upstairs and be right back," I muttered.

When we reached the bedroom, I folded my arms and looked at Ron. "Don't get into any trouble while I'm gone, understand?"

He barked and jumped on me, licking my face. I laughed as I stumbled backward. My hand hit the concealment charm book and it fell open on the ground. I gently pushed Ron aside and bent to retrieve it, pausing just before I closed it. I read the spell described on the page, my heart beating faster. It was _perfect_!

I opened the drawer in my nightstand and pulled out the other book Luna had given me, flipping through the pages till I found the one I'd marked. These two spells together—if I could just get Malfoy to let me use his wand—

I grabbed Ron's face and kissed his nose. "I love you," I whispered. He barked and licked me again, wagging his tail.

* * *

**A/N: **I'll get at least one more chapter up today :) As always, thanks for the wonderful support!


	22. Closeted

**Chapter Twenty-Two: Closeted**

"You never came down to eat."

I jumped. Draco was standing in the doorway, his arms folded. I'd been so focused on figuring out exactly how to cast the spell that I hadn't even heard him come in. I sat up a little straighter on the bed.

"I got distracted," I said, unable to think of a better excuse.

"For three hours?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you, Draco."

He glanced at Ron next to me, and his eyes narrowed. "What is he doing on the bed?"

I put a hand on Ron's back. "You're not allergic or anything, are you?"

He frowned, but didn't say anything. He closed the door behind him and took off his shirt as he headed to the closet. I immediately returned my attention to my book. Why did that _still _make me uncomfortable? It was even more awkward with Ron in the room.

"Where is he going to sleep?" Draco called.

"Who?"

"The dog."

"_Billy_ is going to sleep in here. I made up a bed for him at the foot of our bed."

Draco stuck his head out of the closet. "Absolutely not!"

"Draco, getting a dog was your idea!"

"I didn't think I'd be sharing a room with him, let alone a fiancée! He hasn't even been here a day, and he's already taken my place!"

"If you're jealous of a _dog _you're even less confident in this relationship than I thought."

He sighed in defeat and disappeared back into the closet. I set the books on my lap aside as he reemerged, dressed for bed.

"Why don't you change and come to bed?" he said, his tone strained.

"What if I'm not tired?"

"Then—I don't know! You obviously don't care what I have to say anyway."

I sighed. We may not _actually _be engaged, but this was still no fun. I glanced at Ron—he seemed to be enjoying it.

"Fine," I said, and stood. I picked Ron up and set him on the ground. "Time for you to go to bed, too."

Ron obediently went to the foot of the bed, though he didn't seem particularly happy about it. I went into the closet to change. When I came out, Draco was already lying in bed. I turned off the lights and joined him. After a minute, he rolled over and put his arms around me.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "Not just for today, for everything."

Before I could think of a way to respond, Ron jumped on the bed. Draco yelled and jumped back.

"You need to get that dog under control!"

I sighed and looked at Ron. Part of me wanted to laugh, part of me wanted to scream at him.

"Off the bed, Billy," I said. "Bad dog."

He whined and didn't move. After a minute, I finally sat up and pushed him off.

"You can't come up here," I said sternly. "_Listen _to me."

Very reluctantly, Ron returned to the foot of the bed. Draco tried to put his arms around me again, but I scooted away from him.

"Goodnight, Draco," I muttered.

He sighed. "Goodnight."

I waited until I heard him snoring, then climbed out of bed again. Ron perked up, but stayed where he was. I walked around the bed to Draco's side and opened his nightstand drawer, pulling his wand out of it. I then returned to my side, retrieved my books, and set them on the floor in front of me.

"_Lumos_," I whispered.

The tip of Draco's wand lit up. I turned to the pages I needed in both books and took a breath.

_Let's hope this works_.

* * *

Draco slowly opened his eyes. He jumped when he saw me leaning over him.

"Merlin, Astoria, what—?"

"Good, you're awake!" I grabbed his hand and practically pulled him off the bed. "I need you to help me pick out my outfit for the day."

"Your—what?"

I led him toward the closet. We were almost there when he pulled his hand away.

"Let me wake up! What is going on?"

"Like I said, I want your opinion on what I'm going to wear."

"Since _when_?"

"Since I decided to show you that you're opinions are important to me. Come on!"

I grabbed his hand again, opened the closet door, and pushed him inside. Ron followed us in. Draco groaned.

"Does he go _everywhere _with you now? What is he, your guard dog?"

I closed the door. Ron transformed into himself, folding his arms and glaring at Malfoy.

"That's exactly what I am."

Draco blinked and looked around. It took him a minute to realize we weren't in the closet, and another minute to fully comprehend who was standing in front of him.

"_What is going on_?"

"While you were busy doing who-knows-what in the States, I ran into some old friends."

Draco stared at Ron. "I saw you die."

"And the whole world saw Hermione's body burned to a crisp. Looks can be deceiving."

He shook his head. "You bringing '_Billy_' home makes a lot more sense now. I was right when I said he was stealing my fiancée."

Ron narrowed his eyes. "_Fake_ fiancée."

"Seriously?" I said, exasperated. "If you two can't get your act together—_especially _you, Ron—we're going to have a big problem on our hands." I folded my arms. "Ron, outside of this room you're going to make it seem like you've warmed up to Malfoy. And Draco, you're going to start treating 'Billy' like man's best friend. Got it?"

"I'll behave if he does," Draco muttered.

"As long as you keep your hands off my girlfriend," said Ron.

"Yeah, like that wouldn't be suspicious," Malfoy scoffed.

"Malfoy's right, Ron," I said. "I love you, but you need to get a hold of yourself or you're going to have to leave."

When he didn't immediately respond, I put my hand on his cheek and forced him to look at me. "Hey. You trust me, right?"

Ron sighed. "_Fine_."

"Good." I kissed him. I thought I saw Draco frown.

He cleared his throat after a minute. "Where's my closet?"

"Where it's always been." I said, a smug smile on my face. "Just turn the knob left instead of right, and push in instead of pull out, and you're here."

"And you did this when?"

"While you slept. It took me almost all night—would have been _so _much faster if I'd had my own wand and hadn't had to use yours."

Draco let out a surprised sound. "You used _my _wand? Why not Astoria's?"

"Because it hates me! It doesn't do _anything _I want it to!"

He frowned. "You should have asked me first."

"Back off, Malfoy," Ron said, stepping in front of me. "You're the one who asked her to do this in the first place."

Malfoy put up his hands semi-mockingly. I sighed.

"Ron, that wasn't necessary," I muttered.

"Can we have the room?" said Draco after a minute. "Hermione and I have some things to discuss that don't concern you, Weasley."

Ron growled—it sounded almost just like his growl as a dog. "I'm not leaving."

"Actually, you are," I said.

Ron turned and looked at me, confused. "Hermione, you've already told me everything. There's no reason for me to leave."

Draco laughed. "Really? You told him everything? I find that hard to believe."

"Just wait outside," I said to Ron, ignoring Draco. "He won't talk with you in here."

Ron hesitated. He glanced back at Malfoy, a scowl on his face.

"Do you trust me or not?" I demanded.

Finally, he sighed again and transformed back into a dog. I opened the door, and he walked out.

"Well, this certainly makes things more interesting, doesn't it?" Draco said when I closed the door. "A week ago, you were snogging me in a hotel room, and the minute he shows up again—"

"You know very well that Ron being alive changed _nothing_," I spat as I whirled around. "What happened in California was a huge mistake, and would have been whether or not you murderedthat nurse—_that's _why I left, remember?"

"I will _never _understand you!" he groaned. "You say you're wiling to do whatever it takes to keep Harry safe, but when desperate measures are called for—"

"Unbreakable vow! Memory charms! _Bribing!_" I was fuming. "There are a _million _other ways to keep someone from spilling a secret!"

"I'm sorry," he said, _not _sounding sincere. "I'm sorry I disgust you, I'm sorry that night ended the way it did—I really am. But I'm _not _sorry for protecting Potter."

I shook my head. "You just better watch what you do from now on, because Ron won't be as kind as I'm being."

"You call the way you're treating me _kind_?"

"I haven't turned on you—not yet, anyway! The_ moment_ Ron sees you go to far, he will. So don't go to far again!"

I turned to leave. I heard Draco sigh behind me.

"Hermione, wait—"

"I'm hungry. We'll discuss our plans later. As for _this _conversation," I turned halfway around, "nothing ever happened between you and me, and nothing ever will. Understood?"

He just pursed his lips. I took a deep breath and walked through the door. Ron barked when he saw me, sensing my anger. I sighed.

"It's all right," I said, patting his head. "I took care of it."

I just hoped Malfoy heeded my warning.

* * *

**A/N: **More plot, less love-triangle coming up in the next chapter. Looking forward to your reviews!


	23. Break-In

**Chapter Twenty-Three: Break-In**

Over the next few days, I was pleasantly surprised by both Draco's and Ron's behavior. Ron still did something to separate us almost every time we touched, but his actions were less hostile and more playful. Draco didn't frown every time he saw him anymore—he even tried to make a show of playing with him once, though Ron didn't exactly oblige. He did insist, however, that Ron stay off the bed.

Lord and Lady Greengrass finally left, relieving a huge amount of the tension in the house, but not before sitting me down for a stern talk. Apparently I had a month to come up with some new information on Draco, and if I couldn't do it they would send someone else and I'd be done. Ron, Draco, and I discussed it, but couldn't come up with a solution that would both satisfy the Dark Lord and keep Harry safe. It was painful not to have a concrete plan in place, but all we could do was keep thinking about it and hope one of us came up with something.

Daphne was still around, and it seemed like she was starting to warm up to me. She tried a few more spells for Ron's scars, but eventually gave up when I told her it didn't really matter to me any more. She helped me pick out the wedding colors (we settled on green and silver—ingenious, I know) and took me shopping for a wedding dress. My heart about stopped when I looked at the prices, so I decided that I just wasn't going to. I don't want to know what the one I finally ended up with cost.

On Daphne's last day staying with us, we all sat at the dining table together for breakfast. Draco had, begrudgingly, decided that Ron could be in the dining room with us when we didn't have company (I convinced him Daphne didn't count). Ron was especially happy about this new arrangement, since I would feed him bacon under the table.

The Daily Prophet was delivered, as always, and Daphne opened it up. After a few minutes, she frowned.

"Did you know Amycus Carrow lost his memory?" she said, looking up at us.

Draco raised his eyebrows. "No, I didn't."

"I think I heard something about it," I said quietly.

"What happened?" asked Draco.

"He was attacked by the rebels," Daphne said, sounding horrified. "At the Weasley's old house, it says. He can't remember anything at all."

"I wonder who's responsible," Draco said thoughtfully.

I glanced up. He was looking directly at me, hiding a smirk. I fed Ron another piece of bacon and shrugged, hiding my own small smile.

"Who knows? Could be any one of them."

Draco's smirk grew more visible as I took a bite of my omelet.

"Oh!" Daphne exclaimed, her eyes opening wide. "There was a break-in at the Emperor's palace!"

Ron's ears perked up, and Draco's smirk disappeared. I almost choked on the omelet.

"_What_?"

"Last night!" She skimmed the article. "'Authorities say nothing was taken, but it is believed that the Emperor's vault was the intended target.'"

"Did they catch the burglars?" I said, probably sounding a bit too eager.

"One of them." She narrowed her eyes. "Seamus—Finnigan? Oh, I remember him! He was the one always blowing things up!"

Ron stood and ran out of the room. I used it as an excuse to leave as well. As I'd suspected, he ran straight to the bedroom and was pawing the closet door.

I opened it without a word, and we both stepped inside. He transformed the moment the door was closed and began pacing the room.

"This doesn't make sense! The target was the Old Ministry, not the palace! We weren't ready for that one!"

"Okay Ron, calm down," I said, putting my hands on his shoulders. "Why don't you start by filling me in?"

He sighed and forced himself to sit down. "We've been planning raids on a number of the Emperor's private vaults—there are a couple in Gringgotts, one in the old Ministry, one in his palace, and we think two others somewhere. Actually, they may not be vaults at all, just places with high security."

The color drained from my face. "This sounds awfully familiar."

He nodded. "He made more, Herm. It only makes sense. Only this time, they're not only guarded by spells and enchantments, but by at least two death eaters twenty-four, seven."

"I didn't think his soul could handle any more tearing!"

"He either found a way to strengthen the remaining fragments, or he doesn't care."

The door opened and Draco entered. "Good thing Daphne was the only one in there, and good thing she trusts you, because your exit was _definitely _suspicious."

"Sorry," I sighed. "Was there anything else in the article? About what happened to Seamus, maybe?"

"Finnigan's in Azkaban, awaiting trial—which is to say, awaiting interrogation and torture."

"When is the trial supposed to be held?"

"Day after tomorrow. I can get us seats there if you'd like, but I don't think that would be such a good idea with the display you just put on."

I shook my head. "No. We need to get him out of Azkaban before then."

Draco scoffed. "You want me to plan an escape from Azkaban in less than forty-eight hours? Impossible. I'm sorry, but your friend's beyond help."

"Not if we intercept him while they're bringing him to the trial," said Ron.

Draco eyed him curiously. "I'm listening."

"There's a lull in security during the transition from Azkaban guards to Ministry guards," Ron said. "Once the prisoner arrives through the floo network, he's put into a locked and enchanted room, bound of course, and left there for about ten minutes while paperwork is filed, rooms are prepared, and so forth. Two guards stay outside the door, but the rest leave."

Draco didn't look completely convinced. "And you know this how?"

"For the past year and a half, I've been planning to use it to get Hermione out of Azkaban."

I raised an eyebrow. "Ron, why would they have brought me to the Ministry?"

He let out a small laugh. "Yeah, that was the flaw in the plan. We were hoping they would bring you in for questioning if we did something drastic enough, something with ties back to me or Harry."

"It's possible, but it's risky." Draco frowned. "If Hermione or I are seen there, it could ruin everything, and you're supposed to be dead."

Ron looked at me. "Hermione, you still have the coin, right?"

I pulled it out of my pocket. "We need to know the exact time they're transferring him first. Draco, do you think you could possibly find that out?"

Draco sighed. "Why are we doing this again? Risking everything for someone who's completely insignificant."

"He's our _friend_," I said before Ron could voice his own reaction. "And we don't leave anyone behind."

"What were they looking for, anyway?" Draco said, sounding exasperated.

"Just trying to cause trouble," said Ron with a shrug.

"No, Ron," I said. "We need to tell him the truth."

Ron pursed his lips, but didn't voice an objection.

"Have you heard of horcruxes?" I said.

"Of course," Draco said, almost rolling his eyes. "I thought that might be how the Dark Lord managed to come back from the dead."

"Well, you were right. He made six of them, splitting his soul into seven parts. The year leading up to the battle of Hogwarts, we hunted them down and destroyed them all," I sighed, "we just couldn't beat him."

"What, and you think he made new ones?"

"Right after the battle, he went to Egypt for a few days, and reportedly came back with some ancient wizarding artifacts from there and from Greece," Ron said, standing, "but no one else ever saw them."

"So how do you know they even exist?"

"Because it's what makes sense, Malfoy," said Ron, sounding annoyed. "He did it once, why wouldn't he do it again? His palace was built just after that, with a huge vault, and he added a vault to the old Ministry. They were built to protect pieces of his soul."

"Or his gold, or any other number of things."

"Regardless," I said quickly, "that's what they were looking for at his palace. But right now, we need to focus on Seamus. Can you get that schedule for us, Draco?"

Draco hesitated, then let out a sigh. "I'll see what I can do." He looked up at me. "Honestly, though, you might have to sweet-talk Blaise."

Ron growled. "Out of the question."

"Blaise is Junior Head of Security at the Emperor's headquarters. He'll be able to tell you when, where, how—whatever you couldn't possibly want."

"So why don't you ask him?" said Ron. "You're friends."

Draco scoffed. "I may have asked him to be the 'best man' at my wedding, but we are most certainly _not _friends. He wants me out of the way just as much as anyone."

"Invite him over for dinner," I said.

Ron rounded on me. "You can't be serious!"

"I am completely serious, and _you _are going nowhere near him," I said, putting my hands on my hips. "This is for Seamus—I have to try, and you'll only get in the way."

"There is still a dungeon downstairs," Draco offered.

Ron growled again, but he knew I was right. After a minute, he sighed. "_Fine_."

"I'll go send the invitation," said Draco, and he left the room.

* * *

**A/N: WOW! OVER 100 REVIEWS! **

Guys...I don't even know what to say...

Now a quick comment on all the reviews about DHr vs. RHr -

As the author of this fanfic, I reserve the right to write whatever pairing(s) I like, regardless of the principal characters listed. Notice that the genre of this fic is _not _listed as a romance - Draco and Hermione _are_ the principal characters, but they may or may not end up together in the end.

That being said...

RHr fans, prepare to be disappointed. DHr fans, do the same. Why? So that in the end, you either will have been expecting the ending you didn't want or you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Or I may throw a curve ball and stick her with neither, who knows :P

I will **not **reveal who she ends up with before the end of the fic.

Rant over. Please, despite what pairing you're rooting for, keep reading. Because in all honestly, though the last few chapters have dealt a lot with Hermione's feelings about these two, this particular fic is not about a love-triangle - it is about the trio reuniting and, with Draco's help, defeating Voldemort once and for all. I think that's a cause we can _all _get behind :)

Looking forward to your reviews!


	24. Seduction

**Chapter Twenty-Four: Seduction**

"Well, what do you think?"

I did a twirl in the green dress I'd picked out. Ron looked up at me, sighed, and looked back down at the ground. "You look beautiful," he muttered.

I put my hands on my hips. "That didn't sound very convincing."

"That's because I _hate _this plan."

"Do you have a better idea?"

"It's too risky," Ron groaned and stood, "and not just because he might wonder why you're asking so many questions. What if he tries to go too far?"

"Ron, I know how to handle myself."

"Not around guys like _him _you don't." He took my hand. "Let me be down there with you. I promise, I'll only intervene if it's absolutely necessary."

"Your track record speaks otherwise." I shook my head. "Besides, I know you. Whatever mindset you went in there with, you'd end up tearing his face off."

Draco entered the room, bringing our conversation to an end. I let go of Ron's hand and approached him.

"What's your opinion? Should I change?"

Draco smiled as he looked me up and down. "No, you look perfect. Although that dress would look much better on _your _body than Astoria's."

"Too bad that's not an option," I laughed. I heard Ron make a noise behind me, but ignored him.

"Blaise should be here any minute. Shall we?"

I took Draco's arm, then turned halfway around to glance at Ron. "Are you staying in here, or are you coming out to the bedroom?"

He scowled as he transformed into a dog and walked out of the secret room with us. He immediately ran over to the bed and jumped on it. Draco glared at him.

"Leave him," I said, rolling my eyes. "He'll just jump back up the minute we leave."

When we walked into the hall, Draco paused and pointed his wand at the closed bedroom door.

"_Colloportus_."

"You're locking it?" I said with a frown. "You realize he's a dog, right? He can't turn doorknobs."

"I wouldn't put anything past that dog," Draco muttered.

I sighed inwardly as we made our way downstairs. When we reached the dining room, both Daphne and Zabini were already seated. Zabini stood as we entered.

"Blaise!" I said, beaming. "I'm so glad you could make it at such short notice!"

"Anything for my favorite couple," he said with a smirk.

Draco and I took our seats, him next to Zabini and me next to Daphne, and started to eat. Zabini and Draco fell into some conversation about servants, but Zabini sent me a flirtatious look every time Draco wasn't looking. I returned them to the best of my ability.

Daphne cleared her throat. "You didn't tell me we were having company on my last night," she whispered.

"I'm sorry," I said sincerely. "It was a last minute decision. Draco suggested it and, well, frankly I wanted to see him."

Daphne was quiet for a moment. "If you ask me, you have your eyes on the wrong man. Whatever the Emperor thinks of Draco, he's a good guy. Blaise? Not so much."

"Careful saying things like that," I said after a minute, dropping my voice even lower. "You don't want people to think you're in league with Draco."

"Is that a threat?" she breathed.

"Heavens, no!" I said, a little louder than I meant to. The boys paused in their conversation and gazed at me.

"Daphne was suggesting we change the wedding colors to green and _cream_," I said, putting as much disgust into my voice as I could. "I'm wearing _white _Daphne! I can't have _cream _as one of my colors!"

"You're right, I'm sorry," she said quickly. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"Neither do I," I said, rolling my eyes. When the boys resumed their conversation, I caught her eye. She sent me a small, thankful smile.

We fell into silence. When there was a lull in Draco and Zabini's conversation, I cleared my throat.

"Blaise, what do you think of the break-in?" I said casually.

"I think the rebels were off their rocker to try to break into the palace," he said with his mouth full. "It's unbelievable that all but one of them escaped."

"You're in charge of the prisoner's transport, aren't you?"

He sat up a little straighter, a smug grin on his face. "Yes, I am. Well, me and Yaxley, but he's given me the reigns on this one."

"Good for you," Draco said, patting him on the back. "About time they started showing you the respect you deserve around there."

I let the conversation move on to something else, not wanting to appear suspicious. When everyone was finished eating, I was the first to stand.

"Blaise, if I remember correctly, you mentioned something about a book you were looking for last time you were here—I think I might have found it in the library. I'd be happy to show you."

Zabini's grin turned sideways. "That would be great. Draco, if you don't mind me stealing your fiancée away for a moment—"

"As long as you bring her back," said Draco. He sent me an encouraging smile as I let Zabini take my arm and walk down the hall with me.

"I never said anything about a book," he whispered in my ear.

I laughed. "You think I'm interested in _books_?"

He smirked. My nerves increased slightly as we walked further away from the dining room, but I hid them. When we reached the library, we stepped inside, and he immediately closed the door and pushed me against it. It took all my self-control not to push him off when he started kissing me.

Fighting all of my instincts, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. He kissed me hungrily, with increasing passion, until he moved his lips to my neck and reached for my zipper—

"I have to ask you something," I breathed, starting to panic.

He grunted, but continued kissing my skin, started unzipping my dress—

"What time are you transferring Finnigan?"

He pulled back suddenly and stared at me. "What?"

"I think Draco may have been involved in the break-in, and I want to question Finnigan," I said, breathing quickly. "All I need is five minutes alone with him—just tell me when and where."

He groaned. "You want to talk about this _now_?"

I put my hand on his cheek. "As much I want to, you _know _we can't do this here," I said, doing my best to sound disappointed. "But if you can get me those five minutes with Finnigan, I could be yours again by the end of the week."

He thought for a minute, then nodded. "I'll put in a request for a visit—"

"No!" I said with a frown. "No one can know but you and me."

Zabini furrowed his eyebrows. "Why?"

"Because," I sighed an exasperated sigh as I walked a few paces away from him. "The Emperor's losing faith in me. I don't want to report anything to him until I'm absolutely certain."

I watched him consider me anxiously. He was hesitating, unable to make up his mind. In a last ditch effort, I ran to him and jumped in his arms, kissing him desperately. He held me so tight I was afraid I was going to crack a rib.

"All right, Love," he breathed when our lips parted. "Anything for you."

* * *

**A/N: **Looking forward to your reviews! You guys are amazing :)


	25. Letter

**Chapter Twenty-Five: Letter**

Ron was all too eager to get into the hidden room the minute Draco and I returned. Once in there, he transformed.

"Well?" he said.

"I feel like I could soak in the tub all night and _still _not be clean," I said, cringing, "but I got it. 10:00AM, day after tomorrow, level 10, room 183." I tossed Ron the coin.

As he sent the message, I glanced at Draco. "I told him I thought you were involved in the break-in and wanted to question Seamus about it."

"Good cover," said Draco with a nod. "Think he'll tell anyone else?"

"He better not," I said with another cringe. "At least not until afterwards." I turned to Ron. "In order for this to work, and me to still keep my cover, you're going to have to knock me unconscious."

"Wait—what?" both boys said simultaneously.

"I'll get the door open, but it's your job," I gestured to Ron, "to get him out. It can't look like I had anything to do with his escape, so you'll have to stun me or something." I turned to Draco. "You can't be there at all."

"And what am I supposed to do?" he said, folding his arms.

"Stay here and act like you have no idea what's going on! And if anything goes wrong—if I'm found out somehow—get yourself, and Harry, to safety."

Draco did _not _look happy about that plan.

"Okay, how am I supposed to get him out?" Ron said with a frown. "It's not like I can just waltz up there with you, as a human or a dog."

"There's a fireplace just down the hall on level 10. It's usually closed to the floo network, but Blaise said he would have it temporarily opened for travel to and from Malfoy Manor. If you disillusion yourself, you could go through with me and use it to get back."

"No good," he said, shaking his head. "All the fireplaces have enchantments on them—I wouldn't make it past the hearth without being completely visible again."

"Then we need something better than I spell." I turned back to Draco. "Please tell me you know what your parents did with Harry's cloak."

Ron's jaw dropped. "_They've _had the cloak all this time?"

"Do you?" I said earnestly.

Draco sighed. "Yes. It's in our vault in Gringgotts."

"Well, it's time to get it out."

"First thing in the morning," he muttered, then left the room.

I watched him go, a slight frown on my face. Ron didn't notice.

"So, I follow you in with the cloak...?"

"And get him out," I said simply. "Put him under the cloak with you, give him Polyjuice potion, whatever. I don't want to know exactly how you do it just in case."

"Fair enough," he said, then pulled me into his arms. "But nothing's going to happen to you."

I let him hold me for a moment before pulling away. "You should find Ginny, tell her about the plan—"

"She knows what to do," he said, kissing my forehead. "We talked about this in detail when planning to get you out. She and a few others will create a distraction in the atrium, pulling the guards away from Seamus and giving us more time."

I hesitated. "You should still go talk to her in person."

"Why?"

"Because I don't want there to be any chance we could screw this up," I said with a sigh.

After a minute, he nodded. "All right. I'll leave tonight."

"Be back by noon tomorrow."

"I'll be back way before then," he said.

He leaned down and kissed me sweetly before transforming. We walked out into the bedroom. Draco was already dressed for bed. He eyed us curiously as we approached the bedroom door.

"Where are you going?"

"Billy's restless—I'm going to let him outside for the night."

Draco nodded, understanding. "All right, I'll see you when you get back."

There was something in his expression—restlessness? Frustration? I wasn't sure what to call it.

Ron barked, snapping me out of my thoughts. I opened the door for him and we went downstairs. Before I opened the front door, I knelt down next to him and scratched behind his ears.

"You be a good boy," I said quietly. He licked my face.

He knew what I meant—be safe.

I let him out, then headed back upstairs. Draco had climbed into the bed, but wasn't sleeping. Even after I changed into pajamas, he was still wide-awake. I turned out the lights and lied down next to him.

"What wrong?" I said after a minute.

He sighed. "Nothing. I just—wish I could always be there for you."

I turned on my side to look at him. He was staring at the ceiling, purposely avoiding my gaze. I frowned. I knew he wanted to help, but I didn't know that by asking him to stay behind I would make him feel—feel what, useless? Unappreciated? He was most definitely _not _useless, and that was why he had to stay behind.

But if it looked like he was there for the trial...

"How would you like to join me at Finnigan's trial on Friday?" I said quietly.

He slowly turned to look at me. "Is that what you were talking to Blaise for so long about?"

I nodded. "I thought I would surprise you."

A small smile grazed his lips. "I would love that."

"I thought you might," I said, returning his smile.

He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and kissed my forehead. I closed my eyes and rolled back onto my other side. After a minute, he tentatively reached out and touched me. I scooted towards him, letting him put his arms around me. Again, I was surprised, and a little unnerved, by the fact that I was _not _uncomfortable, but I soon fell asleep in his embrace.

* * *

I felt like I was twiddling my thumbs the entire next day. Draco was up before me, headed to Gringgotts. When I went downstairs, Ron was already back, pawing at the door to get inside. He jumped on me and licked my face when he did, which I took as a good sign.

I sent Blaise an owl, requesting seats at the trial, and he responded saying he'd already reserved them for me. Everything was falling into place—now we just had to hope it all went according to plan.

When Draco returned just before lunch, I was in the bedroom, reading. Ron was respecting Draco's request for him to stay off the bed, but he was seated on the ground next to me and I reached down and scratched his head. Draco forced a smile and set down his briefcase when he entered.

"Where were you this morning?" I said, not taking my eyes off the book.

"I went to Gringgotts to make a withdrawal. This wedding is getting more and more expensive."

"That's what you asked for when you decided to marry me," I said playfully. "A letter came for you while you were out, by the way. I put it on your nightstand."

As I returned my full attention to my book, he crossed to the nightstand and picked up the letter. I was hardly paying attention as he opened it. He was silent for a few minutes, reading it. Eventually, he cleared his throat.

"Dear, come with me into the closet, will you? I have a surprise I think you're going to like very much."

I reluctantly set aside my book and hopped off the bed. "Accessory or clothing?"

"You'll see." He picked up the suitcase and walked to the closet door. Ron and I both followed him inside. The minute it was shut, he turned to face us, a huge smile on his face.

"Read this," he said eagerly, handing the letter to me.

I unfolded it curiously. Ron transformed and read it over my shoulder.

_Dear Mr. Malfoy,_

_As always, your generosity is greatly appreciated. We are pleased to inform you that because of your contributions, thousands of patients in the western United States will receive the care they need. Additionally, we have enough funds left over to invest in groundbreaking research that could potentially eradicate this disease once and for all._

_Kindness is a rare virtue these days, and we would like to show our gratitude for your kindness by offering you a trip to sunny California to see first-hand the good your donations are doing. Expenses would be paid, of course, and lodging would be provided._

_Looking forward to hearing from you soon,_

_The Evan James Foundation_

"What is the Evan James Foundation?" Ron said, frowning.

"This has something to do with Harry, doesn't it?" I said, glancing up at Draco.

He nodded, grinning. "Read the first letter of each sentence."

I did, and my heart just about stopped. They formed one short, wonderful word:

_AWAKE._

* * *

**A/N: **Can't wait to hear your reviews! :D


	26. Headquarters

**Chapter Twenty-Six: Headquarters**

"He's awake?" I breathed.

Ron let out a joyous laugh, picked me up, and spun me around.

"This is _great_!" he exclaimed, setting me down and pulling a shocked Draco into a hug. "When do we leave? Now? Tonight?"

I put a calming hand on his shoulder. "Ron, we still have to get Seamus."

Ron released Draco, forcing himself to calm down. "Right, of course. Sorry, I just—got excited."

"I'm excited too," I said, smiling. "I wonder what finally pulled him out of it."

"Who cares?" Ron said, his eyes shining. He picked me up in another hug, and I let myself laugh with him as he spun me around again. Draco smiled as he watched us and folded his arms.

"Okay, one thing at a time," I said as he set me down again. "Draco, did you get the cloak?"

He nodded, opened his briefcase, and tossed it at Ron. Ron's grin widened, and he and I exchanged a look. In all the excitement about Harry, we couldn't help but think of all the adventures we had with this cloak.

And after this next one, the three of us would be reunited.

"I'm gonna go tell Ginny the good news," said Ron. He kissed my cheek. "I'll be back by dinner."

Before either Draco or I could respond, he'd thrown the cloak over himself and walked out the door.

I chuckled, but my mood turned serious as I faced Draco again.

"I think that maybe you—"

"Should go to Harry, I know," he said with a sideways smile. "So if anything goes wrong and the Emperor reads your mind, I can move him immediately."

"That doesn't make you feel pushed aside?"

"Pushed aside?" He shook his head. "Not at all. Actually, the fact that you're trusting me to go to him without you there is kind of amazing."

I returned his smile. "I do trust you, Draco."

He grinned, and there was something in his expression I couldn't quite place. "You have no idea how wonderful it is to hear you say that. I was worried I was never going to, because of what happened in California."

"I may not approve of your methods," I said, "but you've earned my trust regardless."

I turned to leave. Draco caught my arm before I reached the door.

"About that," he said softly, "you were right. I had other choices I could have made, with both Astoria and that nurse. I still think what I did was the most secure option," he sighed, "but I'm trying to see it your way, I really am. And I hope you understand that I only ever did what I thought was best, and what I thought was necessary. I didn't _enjoy _killing them."

"If I thought you did, I wouldn't be here right now," I said, surprised to hear the gentleness in my voice.

We stared at each other for a moment. Draco hesitated before placing a hand on my cheek. He leaned in closer.

"Draco, stop," I whispered just before our lips touched.

He stopped, but didn't back away. "Why?" he whispered back.

"I'm in love with Ron."

He remained frozen for a moment, then placed his hands on my waist and pulled me towards him, closing the gap. He kissed me, and I found myself involuntarily kissing him back. He ended the kiss and rested his forehead against mine.

"It seems like your mind's not entirely made up," he breathed. "So I'm not giving up."

Slowly, he released me, and left the room. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

* * *

When Ron returned (he tapped me on the shoulder, letting me know he was back) we all met in the closet again. Ron didn't seem to notice me blush when Draco walked in. I wasn't sure exactly what I was feeling—confusion? Frustration? Guilt?

Guilt. Definitely guilt.

We told Ron our plan of Draco going to Harry, and he agreed that it was safest, though he didn't seem thrilled about the fact that Harry was going to _Malfoy _before he saw either of us. I decided to give Draco my coin, much to Ron's displeasure, and we showed him how to use it. He in turn described to us the many enchantments guarding Harry—what the passwords were, how to open the last passageway at the dead end. The plan was for us to join him there as soon as we were all safe.

"And where exactly is the hospital?" said Ron.

"Hermione's been there. She can apparate back without knowing exactly where it is."

Ron narrowed his eyes. "Is this some kind of trick?"

"No, it's smart," I said, putting a gentle hand on his arm. "Once we're in California, I can apparate there without knowing exactly where it is because I've been there before. But if I know exactly where it is—if any of us do—the Emperor could get it out of us and find him himself. This way, even if I am found out, the only way for him to reach Harry without searching every hospital in northern California is by using me, which we all know would never happen."

"Fine," Ron said with a pout. "But you'll contact us if something goes wrong, right?"

"Of course," said Draco. "But your coin system doesn't have a number set for meeting in California."

"We'll make it seven. Where exactly should we plan to meet in that case?"

"The Redwoods Visitors Centre. The one in Orick."

"We'll pass the word along," said Ron. He reached out his hand. "You take good care of Harry till we get there."

"I will." Draco shook his hand. As he turned to leave, he caught my gaze and held it for a moment. I looked at the ground, uncomfortable. He left without another word.

Ron sighed once he was gone. "You're _sure _we can trust him?"

I glanced at the door and thought for a minute. Was I sure?

Yes, I was.

I nodded. "Positive."

"All right then," Ron said, not sounding so sure himself. He left the invisibility cloak in the room when we walked out into the bedroom, him as a dog again of course. Draco was already gone. I changed and climbed into bed and Ron hopped up next to me. I didn't object, despite Draco's rule.

He seemed to fall asleep quickly, but I couldn't. My mind was racing with everything that was happening—Harry waking up, Seamus in Azkaban—

That kiss...

_Merlin's beard, Hermione, get a hold of yourself!_

I shouldn't be focusing on that right now. In fact, I shouldn't even be focusing on Harry right now. Our most immediate concern was pulling off Seamus's escape.

I eventually drifted into a restless sleep, but I was up hours before Ron. To occupy myself, I headed to the library and looked for a book that would mention comas. I wasn't very lucky—I still couldn't figure out how this library was organized, and everything seemed to be about dark magic or trivial magical history. Sighing in defeat, I returned upstairs just as Ron awoke. We still had about an hour and a half to kill, so we went downstairs for breakfast. It was odd, being alone in the dining room of Malfoy Manor. With every passing moment, I felt more and more that I didn't belong here.

At 9:45, we entered the closet. Ron transformed back into himself and picked up the invisibility cloak.

"Remember," I said, "you have to knock me unconscious. You can't go easy on me. It has to look like I was an obstacle to getting Seamus out, not the other way around."

"I know," he said, cupping my chin in his hands and kissing me. If he noticed that I wasn't as accepting as usual, he didn't say anything. He threw the cloak over himself, and we walked together to the nearest fireplace. I waited until just before 10:00 to step inside, and when Ron pulled my sleeve I threw the floo powder at my feet.

Instead of traveling through grate after grate as usual, we jumped straight from Malfoy Manor to level 10 of the old Ministry. I stepped out and turned left, following the Zabini's directions. We passed a group of guards heading the other direction just before reaching room 183. One of the two remaining men stepped in front of the door as I approached.

"No one is to speak to the prisoner," he said.

I pulled out the pass Zabini gave me and handed it to him without a word. He looked surprised, but reluctantly stepped aside. His companion opened the door.

"Thank you," I said as I paused in the doorway, giving Ron a minute to get past. "I'll be out in five minutes."

I walked the rest of the way in, and the door shut behind me. I turned. Seamus was standing in the middle of the room, his hands tied together. He let out a sigh of relief.

"Merlin, am I glad—"

"I have some questions for you," I said quickly, sending him a warning look. They could be listening in.

He seemed to get the message and wiped the smile off his face. "And what makes you think I'll answer them, Lass?"

"I think you want to," I said, pulling out my wand. "To set yourself free, avoid the messy trial you're about to go through. If you tell me what I want to know now, I can get you out of it."

That was our signal. Any minute now, Ron was going to knock me unconscious. I closed my eyes, sending out a silent prayer that whatever he had planned would work.

Seamus laughed, playing along. "_You _have that kind of authority?"

"Yes, I do." _Hit me already! _"And I'm your best chance at getting out of here ali—"

Suddenly, everything went black.

* * *

**A/N: **I can't guarantee another chapter today, but there will definitely be more tomorrow :) Thank you all for reading and I look forward to your reviews!


	27. Harry

**Chapter Twenty-Seven: Harry**

"And you didn't see anyone else?"

I sighed in exasperation. "For the last time, the last thing I remember is walking into the room with Finnigan. No one else was there. Next thing I knew, the guards were forcing me to my feet and Finnigan was gone."

"And what was your reason for visiting Finnigan?"

"You know my reason, Blaise!"

He looked at me apologetically. "I need you to state it for the record."

I sighed again. "I suspected that someone close to me might have been involved in the break-in at the Emperor's palace, so I wanted to question him."

"Who was it you suspected?"

"Draco Malfoy," I said reluctantly.

"And who gave you permission to see the prisoner?"

"_You _did!"

Zabini sighed and set down his quill. "I hope I don't have to tell you how much trouble I'm in, Astoria—how much trouble we're _both _in."

"You think I don't know that?" I snapped. "I shouldn't have convinced you to let me question him alone. But you _know _me, Blaise! I swear to you, I had nothing to do with his escape!"

"I know, and I'll testify to that." He looked at me solemnly. "Best case scenario, I lose my job and am blacklisted from ever working for the Emperor again, in any capacity. I'll probably spend a few months in Azkaban on top of that."

I reached across the table to touch his face. "I am so sorry," I whispered.

"It's not your fault," he muttered. "I'm going to tell Yaxley to focus his investigation on Draco. Maybe he overheard something, or slipped through your occlumency—"

"Draco's not even in the country," I said, pouting. "He's invested in a charity in _America _of all places and went over there to see how his money was being spent."

"Still, even if he wasn't here, he could have helped orchestrate it." Zabini gathered his papers and stood. "Wait here for a few minutes, Love. Someone will tell you when you're free to go."

The moment he left, I was up, pacing around the room. I was incredibly restless, anxious to get out, find Ron and Ginny, and go to Harry. I also needed to warn Draco that he was the prime suspect.

Ages seemed to pass before the door opened again. This time, it was Yaxley. He asked me a few more questions, mostly about Zabini, but soon decided that I was innocent and could leave. I thanked him and tried not to appear in too much of a hurry as I walked to the nearest grate and returned to Malfoy Manor.

I'd already packed a small bag for our trip to California, and I grabbed it and hurried down the stairs. As I neared the main entry, I could hear a dog barking outside. A young maid stood in front of the main doors, seemingly not knowing what she should do. She jumped as I approached.

"Pardon me, Miss!" she stammered. "I wasn't sure if I should let him in, or—"

"I'm taking him out now anyway," I said with a small smile. "Master Malfoy and I will be gone for a few days. Tell everyone to continue to attend to their duties, but not to allow anyone inside the house, understood?"

She nodded, a confused expression on her face. I didn't offer her any more information, simply walked out the front door. Ron jumped on me and licked my face, but the reunion was short. We hurried to the gates and apparated.

The minute we were in the forest, he transformed. "Let's get Ginny," he said, reaching for my hand.

"First, what happened? Is everyone all right?"

Ron grinned. "Everyone's perfect. Luna took a nasty stinging curse, and Dennis Creevey managed to break a couple fingers, but other than that everyone's fine. Seamus says thank you."

"I'll tell him your welcome next time I see him," I said with a smile. "Where are we meeting Gin?"

Ron just took my hand and apparated. We appeared on the same seaside cliffs they'd been staying at before, but right in front of the cave. Ginny walked out of the shadows and approached us.

"Where's everyone else?" I asked.

"We decided it was best to move. We'll show you where when we come back," her smile widened, "hopefully with Harry."

I beamed at her. For the first time since I'd heard he was awake, I really started letting myself get excited. Seven years was a long time to be in a coma, but I wasn't worried where Harry was concerned. Whatever obstacles he might be facing, be it mental or physical, I knew he would overcome them. He was Harry Potter, after all.

I took both of my friends' hands in mine and apparated back to the forest. Draco had created new portkeys for us, and we quickly found them. Before we knew it, we were surrounded by huge redwood trees, and Ginny and Ron were staring up at them in awe.

Without even speaking to them, I took their hands again and apparated once more. The hospital appeared in front of us, just as I remembered it. We hurried inside, found the right lift, and climbed inside it. A few other people joined us, and it was torture waiting for them to get off. The minute we were alone, I pressed the combination Draco had told us, holding onto the railing preemptively.

The doors and passageways seemed to pass by in a blur. When we finally reached the dead end passageway, Draco was standing on the other side, grinning.

"He's been asking for you," he said. "All of you."

I ran, not waiting for someone to lead me to his room. Ron and Ginny followed, right on my heels. His door was open, and I burst in, shoving myself past an annoyed nurse. Harry slowly turned, his bright green eyes gazing up at us.

"Ron," he said weakly, "why does everyone here sound American?"

I let out a sound halfway between a laugh and a sob. Ginny ran past me, took his face in both her hands, and kissed him. Ron put an arm around me and squeezed. I looked up, and his eyes were filling with tears as well.

"Welcome back, mate," he said. "It's good to see you."

Ginny pulled away, and Harry rested his eyes on me. "Who are you?" he asked.

"It's me, Hermione," I said with a smile.

He blinked. "I remember you looking different."

We all laughed, taking him a bit off guard. "Good!" I said.

Ginny, Ron, and I couldn't stop smiling—we were too overcome with joy. Harry was happy to see us as well, but I could tell he was very confused.

"What happened?" he finally said after a few minutes. We had all calmed down enough to sit around the bed.

"What's the last thing you remember?" Ginny asked.

He looked at her with a painful smile. "I remember you. You were talking to someone, but you didn't see me. I was under the invisibility cloak headed to the forest—" He cut himself off, his expression turning to confusion. "I remember my parents, and Sirius, and Lupin—and a green light—"

He sat up straight, groaning as he did so.

"_What happened?_"

Ginny gently forced him to lie back down. I reached out and took his hand.

"You died, Harry," I said quietly. "Or at least, you should have. You went to the Dark Lord, gave yourself up, didn't even _fight _when he cast the killing curse at you." Something caught in my throat. "Do you remember why?"

Harry stared at me a moment before slowly shaking his head. "No. I—I remember knowing I had to die, but I don't remember the reason—" His frown deepened. "Why am I alive?"

"Your guess is as good as ours, mate," said Ron. "We all thought you were dead until a few weeks ago."

"Did you kill the snake?" he asked suddenly. "Nagini? And Riddle—who killed Riddle?"

"Neville killed Nagini," said Ginny, her voice somber. "And Riddle—"

She cut herself off. Harry's face fell when he realized the truth.

"He won, didn't he?"

"He calls himself the Emperor now," I said. "And he's not just ruling the wizarding world—he's trying to take over the muggle world as well."

Harry tried to get out of the bed. We all voice our objections, forced him to lie down.

"I need to get out of here," he said, frustrated. "We need to stop him—"

"You need to rest first," I said sternly. "You've been in a coma. We're not sure if you have any lasting brain damage, and you'll need physical therapy—"

He looked at the three of us again, narrowing his eyes. I could tell he was noticing, for the first time, how much older we all looked. He stared at the scars on Ron's face, obviously old but new to him.

"How long?" he breathed.

Ginny, Ron, and I looked at each other. We all knew it wasn't Harry's fault, that the past seven years were no one's fault but Voldemort's, but we also knew he wouldn't take it that way. He would hold himself responsible for all the death, all the pain. He had been willing to die for all of us, but that wasn't enough for him. He would still blame himself for everything that happened.

"_How long_?" he asked again.

"Seven years."

We all turned. Draco had entered the room, standing silently just inside the doorway.

"What are you doing here?" said Harry, a mix of anger and confusion in his voice.

Draco smirked. "I'm the whole reason you're alive, Potter."

* * *

**A/N: **I hope to get at least one more chapter up today, we'll see :) Looking forward to your reviews!


	28. Truth

**Chapter Twenty-Eight: Truth**

The others were very quiet as Draco and I explained what happened—how Narcissa Malfoy had a change of heart, decided to keep Harry alive, and how Lucius went along with it. We went on to explain how Voldemort had gotten suspicious of them, killed Lucius, imprisoned Narcissa—how Draco took over, rescued me from Azkaban (we left out the part about him killing Astoria). Neither Ginny nor Ron said a word—I could tell they still weren't entirely convinced by the story, but they trusted me enough to go along with it. Harry just listened, his expression unreadable. When we'd finished, he was quiet a moment before speaking.

"Thank you, Draco."

Draco raised his eyebrows slightly. "I wasn't really expecting you to believe me."

"I know more than most that who you are is a choice, not a destiny," he said with a weak smile, "despite how it might seem."

Draco returned his smile, and the conversation changed course. Harry wanted to know everything that had been going on in the past seven years, but we decided it was best to keep the bad to ourselves as much as possible for the moment. Because of that, I didn't really have much room to talk, since I'd been in solitary confinement in Azkaban for almost the entire time.

I didn't plan on telling him that any time soon.

While Ginny and Ron told him about Fred Junior and Teddy (he was living with Bill and Fleur and their daughter, Victoire, somewhere in the middle east) I stood and joined Draco at the back of the room. Even though he was obviously not part of the group, he was still smiling as he watched them.

"What's the smile for?" I asked as I leaned against the wall next to him.

He glanced at me. "It's just good to see you all together again."

I raised an eyebrow. "Draco Malfoy is sentimental?"

He chuckled. "Believe it or not, yes. I was always secretly jealous of what you all had together."

"From a distance, you seemed pretty happy with your cronies," I said with a small smirk. Almost immediately, my smirk faded. "But you never were, were you?"

"With those troll-brains? No." He shook his head. "They were only friends with me because of our parents. And I was only friends with them because—well, they were the only ones who weren't afraid of me, or my father I should say. I acted the way I thought I should, how I thought a 'leader' should act, but it never really felt—right."

He glanced at me again. "Every second I've spent with you has felt right."

I averted my gaze. We both turned our attention back on the others.

"Oh, Ron, you haven't told him your big secret yet!" Ginny said with a grin.

Harry furrowed his eyebrows. "What secret?"

Ron smirked and transformed. Harry's jaw dropped. Ginny laughed at his expression as Ron changed back.

"You are teaching me," he said in awe. "Merlin, Ron, how did you—?"

"Let's get you back to handling this body, first," Ron said with another smirk.

"That reminds me," Draco said, turning to face me again, "your time's running out, Astoria Greengrass. You have two, maybe three days left in that body. There's more Polyjuice potion already with Astoria's DNA in it back at the manor. I'll go get in and be back by tonight."

"Wait!" I grabbed his arm as he turned to leave. "You can't go back there! You're the main suspect in Seamus's escape."

"Of course I am," he said nonchalantly. "It'll be fine, I'll just pop in and out—"

"But what if they're at the house? I told the servants not to let anyone in, but I don't think that'll make much difference—"

"I'll be fine, Hermione," he said with a smile. "No need to worry."

I bit my lip as he turned again.

"Let me go."

"What?"

"They still trust me," I said, almost pleading with him now. "I won't be interrogated if I go back there—they may ask me where you are, but I'll just say I'm not sure, somewhere in America."

"Hermione—"

"Just tell me where it is, and I'll get it."

"Why are you so worried?"

"Because I—I care about you," I stammered. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

He seemed surprised to hear me say those words, but not surprised enough to consent. "I care about you too."

"Well, it's safer for me than it is for you, so it's only logical I should go."

He was quiet for a minute before sighing. "Fine. Straight there, straight back."

"Straight there, straight back," I repeated with a smile.

I approached the others again and told them what was happening. None of them were happy about it, least of all Ron, but I assured them I would be fine. I gave Harry an awkward hug before hugging Ginny and kissing Ron. When I opened my eyes after the kiss, Draco had left the room.

It was easy to find my way back to the portkeys, back to England. When I arrived at Malfoy Manor, there didn't seem to be anyone there. As soon as I walked through the front door, however, the young maid from earlier jumped.

"Miss," she said, panic in her voice. "I know you said not to open the house to anyone, but I thought you'd want me to make an exception—"

"I'm sure Miss Greengrass doesn't mind me visiting. Do you, Astoria?"

I looked up at the grand staircase. Voldemort was descending it, his red eyes peering into my soul. I felt a flash of panic, but hid it away and bowed.

"My Liege," I said with a steady voice. "To what do I owe the honor?"

"Walk with me."

Reluctantly, I followed him into the study.

"Close the door," he ordered with his back to me.

I obeyed, my heartbeat quickening. When I turned back around, he was staring at me again, and his gaze was less than friendly.

"As you know, a very dangerous criminal escaped custody this morning."

"Yes," I breathed.

"What," he said sternly, "were you doing there?"

"I apologize, my Liege," I said quickly. "I should have counseled with you first—I suspected Draco might be involved in the break-in at your palace, but I feared you were losing faith in me so I wanted to find out for myself—"

"So you told my security," he said, raising a hand to silence me. "So Mr. Zabini testified to me before I sent him to Azkaban. And so, I was willing to believe it."

He crossed the study to where there was a small television in the corner. "Do you know why I've brought these muggle devices into the wizarding world?" he said after a moment.

"To garner loyalty?"

"That," his long fingers touched the television set, "and they're incredibly useful. I can make an announcement, organize a funeral, and the event is seen throughout the globe simply by the flip of a switch. Rather ingenious, wouldn't you say?"

My breathing was quickening. "Yes, my Liege."

"A similar invention of the muggles that I've found particular useful is the security camera," he said, his voice turning harsher. "I had one installed in every room at my headquarters."

"Then you know I had nothing to do with it," I stammered. "You must have seen what happened—someone knocked me unconscious, took the prisoner while I was out—"

"Yes, it did appear that way," he said. Suddenly, in three large strides he was directly in front of me, his face inches away from mine.

"But he recognized you."

My heart stopped. "He—he did?"

"'Merlin, am I glad,'" he hissed. "I'm assuming he was going to say, 'to see you'? Those were the words that came out of his mouth when you entered the room. Now tell me, Miss Greengrass, why would a member of the rebels be _glad _to see you?"

I was silent. I thought about reaching for Astoria's wand, but I knew it would do me no good. There was nothing I could do but stand there like a statue, staring into those evil red eyes, fear overcoming me.

He pulled out the elder wand and pointed it at me. I tried to take a step away, but he grabbed my face with his free hand, holding me there.

"_Legilimens._"

The assault was so strong, so merciless, that I started convulsing and fell to the ground. In thirty seconds, it was all over. He knew who I was, knew what Draco had been up to, knew Harry was alive—

His eyes were bulging. He let out a scream of frustration and anger, the most horrible sound I'd ever heard. I curled into a ball and shut my eyes, preparing myself for the inevitable—

"_CRUCIO!_"

* * *

**A/N: **...yeah. Review!


	29. Torture

**Chapter Twenty-Nine: Torture**

My screams filled the manor for what felt like hours. Even after my voice was hoarse, I somehow managed to still make a blood-curdling sound. He hit me with the curse over and over, lifted me off the floor, knocked me around the room.

And I thought Lord Greengrass had been relentless.

He slammed me onto the floor, so hard the wood cracked. I struggled to breathe. Every inch of my body was bruised, broken, bleeding.

He stepped on my already broken arm, and I let out a cry. I thought I was going to pass out. I felt him in my mind once more, searching for more information, extracting everything I knew. Even if I'd had any strength left, I wouldn't have been able to fight him. My mind was an open book for him to read.

He bent down, grabbed me by the hair, and violently forced me to sit up. I whimpered.

"I should have killed you at Hogwarts," he hissed in my ear. He placed his wand against my throat, making it even harder for me to breath. "I should kill you now."

I summoned all my courage. "Do it," I croaked. "You'll lose in the end either way."

"_CRUCIO!_"

Somehow, I was still able to scream. He tossed me to the ground, lifted the spell, then used his wand to bind me tightly with ropes and gag me. Every time I moved a muscle, the ropes grew tighter, digging into my already bruised and bleeding skin.

"Oh, I'll kill you," he said, his voice sending chills through my entire body, "but I'll do it so the whole world can see. The minute that Polyjuice potion wears off, the world will see the true end of Hermione Granger."

I was too exhausted, too broken, to even try to respond. He lifted me with his wand, purposely banging me against doorways and walls as we left the manor. Servants cowered in corners as we passed, horrified but unable to look away. I hung completely limp, spent of all my energy. My fight was gone.

It was over.

We didn't go to the ministry, we didn't go to Azkaban—we went to his palace. In a different set of circumstances, I imagine I would have found it ironically beautiful. As it was, all I felt was terror.

The doors opened as we approached, but he still made sure I hit them. Anyone who was within sight quickly hid at seeing the look on their Emperor's face. A few of them stared, wondering who I was, but not for very long.

"_Bellatrix!_" Voldemort bellowed.

The evil witch hurried into the room. "What's happened?" her eyes rested on me. "What did she do?"

"She is an imposter," he said, throwing me to the ground again. I groaned.

"What? Then who is she?"

"I'll let her tell you yourself." He waved his wand and the gag disappeared, but the ropes remained as tight as ever. They both stood over me, looking more menacing than I could imagine. Voldemort pointed his wand at my face.

"What is your name?"

I pursed my lips. I may have nothing to lose, but I wasn't about to take orders from him, whatever they were.

"_CRUCIO!_"

It was both of them at once. I felt like my body was being split in two. When the curses were lifted, he stomped on my hand.

"WHAT IS YOUR NAME?"

"Hermione Granger!" I yelled.

I saw Bellatrix take a step back. "I thought we already rid ourselves of that little mudblood!"

"_That _was Miss Greengrass," said Voldemort. He didn't step off my hand, rather pushed down on it harder. I moaned in pain.

"I need you to take care of her, my pet," he said. "Keep her alive, for the time being, but do with her what you will. I have some unfinished business to attend to."

He kicked me _hard _before turning around and stomping out of the palace. Bellatrix cackled and lifted me off the ground once more.

"We're going to have some fun, Deary," she whispered.

Any last shred of hope or bravery I had was gone. As we traveled through halls and staircases down to what I assumed was a dungeon, I had to wonder whether I would go insane before I was killed.

* * *

I don't know how long it was before Bellatrix had had enough of me. It was a miracle I still remembered my name by the end. She left me in a pitch-black cell in the basement of the palace. I could hear her cackling gleefully as she walked away, leaving me just inches away from death with scars from her dagger all over my body. I wished I would die, because I knew this wasn't the end of the torture I was facing.

Eventually, two witches entered the cell and tended to some of my wounds. If I'd been able to push them away, I would've—I knew the only reason they were bothering to heal me at all was so I could be tortured more leading up to my inevitable televised execution.

Even after I'd been left alone for a number of hours, my heart continued to race. One, maybe two days, Draco had said, before the potion wore off. That meant I had one, maybe two days before I would be killed. My whole life, everything I'd experienced, everything I'd done, would be gone in the blink of an eye.

I couldn't say exactly what I thought would happen after that—would I be able to find peace? Would I end up stuck here as a ghost?

Would I see my parents again?

I reflected back on all of my best memories with them growing up. As an only child, I was always so spoiled. I thought back to the day I'd received my Hogwarts letter, the confusion and elation I'd felt, the unconditional love and support from both of my parents. They never thought I was crazy—they always believed in me.

If they could have seen this day, could have known what going to Hogwarts would hold in store for me, would they still have supported me?

My mind wandered on to my first year at Hogwarts—meeting Harry and Ron on the train, completely unaware of what was starting. If you'd told me then Harry Potter would become my best friend, that I would fall in love with that ginger boy with a rat, I would have called you crazy.

It _was_ crazy, our journey. It was crazy, exhilarating, frightening, heart-breaking, exciting, painful, wonderful—

I wouldn't change a minute of it.

* * *

Somehow I managed to fall asleep on the cold stone floor—I guess my time is Azkaban wasn't as long ago as it felt. When I awoke, the door to my cell was creaking open. I sat up slowly, ready to face whatever torture they had in store for me head on.

I would not crack.

Bellatrix entered first. I tried not to let her see me cringe. She was followed by Lord and Lady Greengrass, then Daphne. The three of them stared at me. Daphne looked frightened, while her parents just looked confused.

"What is going on?" Lady Greengrass said, turning to Bellatrix. "What has our daughter done?"

"Your daughter did nothing," said Bellatrix. "This is not Astoria."

As if on cue, I felt my body start to change. I moaned as my bones and cells shifted, opening wounds from the day before and causing new aches and pains. The Greengrasses stared as their daughter disappeared, and Hermione Granger took her place. There was a fire in Lord Greengrass's eyes.

"_Where is my baby girl_?" he demanded, stomping towards me and pulling out his wand. "_Where is she?_"

I caught Daphne's gaze. Her eyes were wide, and her mouth was slightly ajar. Guilt overwhelmed me as I looked at her, thought about how I'd deceived her.

"Daphne, I'm so—"

I cut myself off with a scream as her father cast the cruciartus curse. When it was over, I looked up at Daphne again. Her eyes were filling with tears. As her father cast the curse a second time, she ran from the room.

_I'm sorry_, I thought.

_I'm so, so sorry._

* * *

**A/N: **Not exactly an uplifting chapter, I know. But it's not the end! Look for a new chapter before Tuesday at least :)


	30. Execution

**Chapter Thirty: Execution**

I lay face down on cold stone, my nose definitely broken. There was blood all around me—on the ground, on my attackers' hands and clothes. Someone waved their wand, and it all disappeared.

"Let's get her presentable, shall we?" said Bellatrix. "His Imperial Majesty will be returning shortly."

Someone pulled me to my feet. I tried to take a step, but immediately fell back to the ground with a cry.

"Get up!" Lord Greengrass demanded.

"I can't," I breathed. "I think my leg's broken."

Bellatrix pointed her wand at my leg, and a splint appeared. I let out a quiet moan at the new shot of pain. Lord Greengrass grabbed my arm and forced me to my feet once again. I stumbled through the halls, gritting my teeth through the pain. I fell a couple more times, and each time Lord Greengrass kicked me before pulling me back up.

They led me to a backroom. It appeared to be set up as a sort of 'news room,' and I assumed that this was where Voldemort made announcements or addressed his 'subjects' on the telly. This was where I was to die—away from prying eyes, but in front of the whole world at the same time.

Bellatrix bound me again for the time being before directing the television crew that had started to enter. None of them looked at me, or if they did they quickly looked away. I could tell they felt guilty, but they were trying to convince themselves they were just doing their jobs, that they weren't really involved.

It was all right. I didn't blame them, and I could forgive them. They may not be stopping the Voldemort's reign of terror, but they weren't the ones who started it either.

I don't know how long it was before the Emperor himself actually arrived. As soon as he entered the room, Bellatrix removed all my bonds (except the one binding my hands together) and forced me to stand. Voldemort walked directly up to me, his red eyes narrow.

"I don't know how you got word to them," he hissed just loud enough so I could hear, "but I will find Potter and kill him once and for all, make no mistake about that."

I let out a huge sigh of relief as he turned away. They must have found out about my capture somehow and taken Harry somewhere else. I sent up a silent prayer, thanking God he was safe. What happened to me didn't matter, as long as Harry was still around to beat Voldemort in the end.

They forced me to stand in front of the cameras. Voldemort stood in front of me, temporarily blocking me from view. The cameras started rolling, and my heart started racing. This was it—this was the end.

This was how I would die.

I didn't hear a word of his opening statement—I was too busy reliving memories, the old and the new, the good and the bad. I thought of all the people in my life, the friends I was so blessed to have. When he stepped aside, when the camera focused on me, I stared straight into the lens. I wondered if they were watching, if they could see me now, bloody and bruised.

I prayed they wouldn't risk their lives to save me.

A door at the back of the room opened, and Daphne slowly walked in, joining her parents behind the cameras. Lord Greengrass put a hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged it off. She met my eyes for a moment, and hers were blank. I wanted to tell her how sorry I was, how I didn't mean to hurt her.

Suddenly, I felt something take a hold of my body. Before I knew what was happening, I was speaking to the camera.

"My name is Hermione Granger," I said. "I am a mudblood, and a traitor. I murdered an innocent witch, because I wished to assume her identity."

I fought the force making me say these things, knowing it had to be the Imperius curse. As my voice continued to betray me, continued to tell lies to the camera, I grew more and more angry.

These would _not _be my last words. This was not how I was going to die.

I summoned every ounce of strength I had and then some. Suddenly, I stopped speaking mid-sentence. Voldemort turned to face me, raised his wand, but he wasn't fast enough. I took a deep breath.

"_LONG LIVE POTTER!_"

My yell turned into a scream as he hit me with the cruciartus curse, but I no longer cared. I'd fought to the end, and I would never stop fighting. I wouldn't be his puppet, not as long as I was alive.

Which wouldn't be very much longer.

He lifted the curse. He didn't speak—the cameras may still be on, but the show was over. I braced myself for the end, for that flash of green light.

A deafening explosion went off, causing me to jump, and the room filled with smoke. I couldn't see more than two inches in front of my face. Voldemort was cursing, and Bellatrix was screaming at someone to do something. In the midst of the commotion, someone seized me and forced me to my feet. I let myself be led away from Voldemort, not knowing if they were friend or foe, just shocked I was still alive.

My captor—or savior—threw me into the fireplace at the end of the room. Whoever it was climbed in and stood next to me. Over the noise of everyone else trying to figure out what was going on, I didn't hear what they said, but it was a woman's voice.

When we finally stopped moving, I looked up. Daphne climbed out of the grate and grabbed a nearby broom. She turned, pointed her wand at the rope around my hands and incinerated it.

"Are you strong enough to hold on to a broom?" she asked, breathing heavily.

I stared at her, speechless. Slowly, I nodded. She helped me out of the fireplace and onto the broomstick, then climbed on behind me. She kicked off hard, and we soared upwards. As we approached a window, she pointed her wand to it and the glass shattered. We flew off, disappearing into the night sky.

* * *

**A/N: **I know it's a shorter chapter, but that's all I've got time for tonight! Tune in for more tomorrow :)


	31. Flight

**Chapter Thirty-One: Flight**

I was _alive_!

I could feel Daphne shaking behind me, but I was still speechless. Of all the people I thought would try to help me escape, she wasn't even on the list.

A stunning spell shot straight past my ear, interrupting my thoughts. Daphne screamed. I turned around as much as I could—there were at least ten Death Eaters following us, each looking more threatening than the last. I didn't know where they'd come from, but that wasn't exactly important right now.

"Daphne, listen to me," I said, trying to hide my panic. "You have to apparate. Somewhere far away from here, somewhere remote. Do you understand?"

"I—I think so—"

Another spell narrowly missed us, then another. Daphne was shaking worse than ever.

"Apparate _now_!" I yelled.

There was a "pop." Mind-searing pain shot up my leg. I screamed and fell off the broom—luckily, she'd apparated close to the ground. She landed and rushed over to me. Through the pain, I squinted down at my broken leg—it was splinched.

"I'm so sorry," she muttered. She set down her purse and opened it, her hands shaking. "I grabbed all my mother's medical supplies, they're in here—"

"Protection spells first," I breathed, holding back another scream of pain.

"But your leg—"

"Won't be much good to me anyway if we're found! _Protection spells_!"

She shook her head. "I know I have something—"

"DAPHNE!"

"All right!" She scrambled to her feet, gripping her wand tightly. "I—I only know _Protego Totalum_..."

I took deep breaths, just trying to stay conscious. "_Muffliato—Salvia Hexia—Cave Inimicum—Fianto Duri—Repello Inimicum_—"

I bit my lip, but didn't quite manage to hold back another scream. She rushed through the spells—I was sure I would have to redo them—and returned to my side. She began desperately rummaging through her bag.

"What do I use, what do I use," she muttered to herself.

"Dittany," I said, the pain almost unbearable now. "Essence—of—Dittany—"

After what seemed like an eternity, she produced a small bottle of the brown liquid. I let out a sigh of relief.

"There's not very much—" she said.

"_Just put it on my leg!_"

She did so, her hands still shaking. I immediately felt the pain subside. My breathing slowed, and I lay back on the ground.

Then, I passed out.

* * *

Slowly, I opened my eyes. The sun was up—I must have slept through the night. I tried to sit up, but almost immediately laid back down, biting my lip to keep from calling out. I definitely had some broken ribs.

As I took a deep breath—cringing with pain—I heard crying a few feet away from me. I turned my head, trying to see her.

"Daphne, are you all right?"

"Merlin, Granger!" she said as she jumped and hurried to my side. "I—I thought I'd killed you—"

I sent her a weak smile. "No, you saved me."

She let out a sigh of relief and pulled her purse towards her. "I bandaged your worst wounds, but I didn't want to do much more until you were awake. With the broken bones, I mean."

I groaned and closed my eyes. "All right, let's get this over with."

"First, drink this." She handed me a small bottle. I took it with my good hand and examined it.

"What is this?"

"Blood-replenishing potion. Trust me, you need it."

She helped me sit up just enough so I could drink the liquid. It tasted disgusting, but I soon felt less light-headed. I laid back down as she pulled out her wand.

"Do you want a calming potion?" she asked nervously. "Something to bite on or hold onto?"

I shook my head. "Just do it."

She first pointed at my nose. She appeared to have calmed down somewhat since earlier—her hands were shaking considerably less.

"_Episkey!_"

I grunted as my nose shifted back into place. The pain didn't last very long, and soon was just a mild ache.

Next, she worked on my hand. The pain was worse this time, and she wasn't able to heal it completely. Instead, she cast "_Ferula_," and a splint appeared.

She moved on to my shoulder, then my ribs. There wasn't much she could do for them, but the pain was a little less prominent when she was done. My leg was even more of a lost cause—because it was splinched, it was difficult for her to do anything without me crying out in pain. She finally just put a new splint on it and rewrapped the splinched area.

"I'm so sorry," she sighed as she set down her wand and opened up her purse again.

"_You're_ sorry?" I said, staring at her in disbelief. "I'm the one who should be sorry. I lied to you, pretended to be your sister—I'm still trying to figure out why in the world you'd want to help me."

"Drink this," she said, producing a potion. She helped me sit up again, growing very quiet. I drank the potion, and the pain of my injuries melted into the background. I continued to stare at her as she put the bottle back into her purse.

"Why did you save me?" I asked quietly.

She met my gaze, but remained silent for a minute. When she did speak, I thought I saw the hint of a smile on her lips.

"Do you remember seeing me at the Battle of Hogwarts?"

"Yes. You and Astoria were fighting."

She nodded. "I'd decided to fight with you—to fight against the Dark Lord. Stori was calling me a traitor, saying I'd bring the whole family to ruin. I was terrified she was right. Do you remember what you said to me?"

"I told you we were going to come out on top."

"You were _so sure_." She stared into the distance, as if she were back in the Great Hall that night. "I couldn't believe it when he won. I went to Azkaban for a few months, but my father got me out. After that, I tried to go back to the person I was, the life I'd lived—but every attack made by the rebels, every show of resistance, reminded me of how _sure _you'd been that night, the confidence all of you had in what you were fighting for. I was just never brave enough to do anything about it."

"Until now," I said slowly. "Daphne, you rescued me right under the Emperor's nose!"

She chuckled. "Yeah, I'm not quite sure if that was brave or just stupid. And I was terrified."

"Definitely brave," I said with a smile. "Bravery doesn't mean you're not scared—it means you do what's right anyway."

She returned my smile. "Well, I couldn't let you die."

"I still don't understand why, though," I said. "I've been lying to you, about everything, for the past month."

"Not everything." She shook her head. "Your kindness wasn't a lie. There was a part of me that hoped that maybe you were really Stori, that she had had a change of heart, but deep down I always knew you couldn't be my sister. And when I found out who you really were—I couldn't let them kill you, not when I had the chance to save you."

We sat in silence for a minute. I was speechless. She tucked her blonde hair behind her ear and stared up at the sky. She'd given up everything—her home, her safety, her family—to save me. That kind of selfless act can never be properly repaid.

"Thank you," I whispered.

She looked down at me with a small smile. "Just promise me we will come out on top this time."

I smiled back. "I promise."

* * *

**A/N: Over 200 reviews and 100 followers!**

Guys...I don't even know what to say...I am so incredibly humbled by your support!

I'll try to post another chapter later today if I don't get too busy. I love you all!


	32. Waiting

**Chapter Thirty-Two: Waiting**

I struggled to sit up and lean against a nearby tree, cringing with every move I made. Daphne was out finding us some dinner, which I wasn't exactly excited about. I had no wand, and no way to defend myself if someone stumbled across our protection circle. It was horrible to feel so completely useless.

As I waited for her to return, I looked through her open purse. The potion she'd given me was wearing off, and I knew that if I didn't take something soon, I'd be paralyzed with pain once more.

She had a decent supply of medicinal potions and herbs, but had already used a good deal of it treating me. She'd used all of the dittany, unfortunately—I hadn't been in the right state of mind to tell her she only needed to put a little on my leg. I got the sense that while she knew what different potions and herbs were used for, she didn't exactly know _how _to use them. That was all right—she'd saved my life, and that was more than enough.

As I was about to set the purse aside, I glimpsed a small brown bag under the rest of the supplies. I pulled it out and untied the string. There were several knuts, a few sickles, and one galleon inside. There were also a few pounds, though I couldn't imagine why Daphne would have them.

I set the bag on my leg and started retying it, when suddenly it warmed up. I froze before opening it again and pulling out the single galleon. The numbers on the side were changing, and I stared.

"I'm back!" said Daphne, sounding exhausted. "I wasn't able to catch any fish, but I found a bush that—"

"Where did you get this?"

She glanced at the coin in my hand. "A galleon? I don't know, I guess I dropped it in my purse—"

"No, it was in this brown bag," I said. "And it's not a galleon. Where did you get the bag?"

She frowned as she sat next to me. After a minute, I saw recognition in her eyes.

"Oh! That was with the things Finnigan had on him when he was arrested."

"How did _you _get it?"

"There's a vault in Mum and Dad's house where the Empire keeps evidence and things confiscated from rebels. They thought I didn't know about it, but it's hard to live in the same house as my father and not overhear some things." She picked up the bag and examined it. "I must have grabbed this when I stole those bombs."

My lips curved into a sideways smile. "The smoke bombs were Seamus's?"

"Yeah, I heard my father telling one of our servants to put them in the vault when Finnigan was first arrested. And they were the first thing I could think of to get you out of that palace."

"Tomorrow," I mumbled, reading the numbers on the side. "Number one—I don't know where that is—"

"Granger, what are you talking about?"

I held out my hand. "I need to use your wand."

She frowned as she handed it to me. "What for?"

"Like I said, this isn't a galleon. I created these coins back when we were at Hogwarts. Remember Dumbledore's Army? We used these to tell everyone the day and time of the next meeting."

She stared as I pointed her wand at the coin, and the numbers started changing again. "And now?"

"We use them for the same thing, but we've added a place to it." I finished the spell and handed her back her wand. "We need to get to Islington, in London."

"Granger, you're hardly in any condition to travel, let alone apparate. And London is swarming with death eaters—the muggles haven't given up yet, but the Emperor's been taking each borough one by one."

"Well, let's hope he hasn't made it to Islington," I said matter-of-factly. "There's a safe-haven there. I just sent a message telling the others to meet there in two hours."

"This is insane!" she said, standing. "You said the Emperor read your mind, right? Then he knows about this safe-haven!"

"Well, we're just going to have to hope he hasn't figured out a way in yet, or that we bump into one of the rebels on our way there."

Daphne shook her head. "_We're _not going anywhere. You're staying put."

I gaped at her. "You can't be serious."

"You can't even stand!" she said. "And we both know it would be foolish of you to apparate again any time soon. Tell me exactly where it is, and I'll meet up with your friends and bring them back here."

The coin warmed up in my hand again. I looked at it—they'd moved the time up an hour. There was no more time to argue.

Reluctantly, I told her how to find Grimmauld Place. I felt completely helpless as she got up to leave.

"And what am I supposed to do if you don't come back?" I said.

She sent me a slightly forced smile. "I'll come back." Then she apparated.

I tried to sit up straighter and growled in frustration. She'd been right—I was in no condition to travel. There was nothing I could do but wait, sitting in a small protection circle, wand-less.

The next two hours were agonizing. Every minute she was gone, I grew more and more fearful she'd been caught. I grew so restless I even tried to stand, and ended up in a very uncomfortable position on the ground. The potion wore off, as I'd expected it would, and I couldn't find another one that's use was simply to dull pain. After a few minutes, I settled on taking another blood-replenishing potion, figuring I probably needed it and it might help my injuries heal faster. I felt a little better afterwards, but still not well enough to sit up again.

_What I wouldn't give for a wand right now._

After what seemed like an eternity, I heard rustling in the trees to my right. Stifling a scream, I forced myself to sit up and lean against the tree again. Whoever it was, they were running. Daphne was the first out of the trees. Ron and Draco followed closely behind. My heart leapt.

"Hermione!" Ron breathed when they entered the protection circle. He ran forward, passing Daphne, and knelt by my side. Gingerly, he took my face in his hands and kissed me. He tried to put an arm around my waist, but I yelped and he pulled back.

"What's wrong?" he said, an overwhelming amount of concern in his voice.

"Nothing I won't survive," I said with a wry smile.

I looked up. Draco was standing right at the edge of the protection circle, smiling down on me. His smile seemed a little forced, however, as Ron leaned forward for another kiss.

"I can't believe you two went to Grimmauld Place alone and didn't end up killing each other," I said when Ron pulled away again.

"Well, we were_ all_ almost killed," said Daphne. She was shaking again. "There were death eaters all around Islington. We didn't get near Grimmauld Place."

"Then how did you find them?"

"They jumped me and demanded to know what I was doing in that part of town."

"Sorry about that," said Draco, sounding surprisingly sincere. "But when we saw you lurking in the shadows, it seemed suspicious."

"We didn't know what happened," Ron said, brushing the hair out of my face lovingly. "George told us you were captured, but everything was happening so quickly—"

"You got Harry to safety, right? I mean, the Dark Lord said he didn't find him, but—"

"He's fine." I thought I saw tears forming in his eyes. "I'm just so glad you are too."

He kissed me again. I thought I heard Draco sigh.

"I'm going to get some supplies," he muttered. "It's not safe to move you right now. I'll be back before nightfall." He paused as he turned. "Take care of her, Weasley."

"Of course," Ron said.

I watched Draco go, a slight frown on my face.

"What's wrong?" Daphne asked.

"Nothing," I said quickly. "I just—don't like the idea of him traveling alone."

"I could go with him if you'd like," she offered.

"That's not a bad idea," said Ron. "He'll be able to find his way back easier that way."

"All right, then."

Daphne ran after Draco, calling for him to wait for her. I watched them disapparate, still frowning, though I wasn't sure why.

* * *

**A/N: **A bit of an awkward chapter...yeah, the next one will be better :P


	33. Confessions

**Chapter Thirty-Three: Confessions**

Ron gingerly helped me into a more comfortable position, cringing every time I did. He scowled.

"When I get my hands on the people that did this to you—"

"You are going to stay _far _away from them until it's absolutely necessary," I said firmly.

"What, you don't think I can take them?"

"Not on your own, I don't."

He sighed. He set his backpack down on the ground and opened it.

"When was the last time you ate?"

I thought for a minute, then let out a small laugh. "You know, I think it was in California. How long ago was that?"

He didn't answer—instead, he grabbed a sandwich from his bag and handed it to me forcefully.

"Eat. _Now_."

I did, relishing every bite. When I finished, he pulled out another sandwich.

I shook my head. "What are you going to eat?"

"Who cares? I ate six hours ago. I can survive one more meal."

I sent him a thankful smile before accepting the sandwich. As I ate, he looked me up and down, inspecting my wounds. I could read the anger on his face, see it increasing the more he looked at me, but I tried to ignore it. I just had to trust he wouldn't do anything stupid.

"We should change this bandage," he said, motioning to the one on my leg. "What happened here?"

"I got splinched when Daphne apparated," I said, flinching as he touched it.

"Does she have any dittany?"

"She did, but she used it all last night."

Ron carefully unwrapped the injury, drawing his hand back when the gash was revealed. I closed my eyes, not wanting to look at it.

"That's deep," he breathed.

I simply nodded. He removed the rest of the bandage before pulling out his wand.

"This may sting, but it's going to help, okay?"

I took a deep breath, ignoring the pain in my chest, as Ron ran his wand over my leg.

"_Vulnera Sanentur._"

He whispered the spell three times. When he was finished, it was still splinched, but considerably less than before. He withdrew a clean bandage from Daphne's bag and rewrapped it. As he did so, a small smirk appeared on his face.

"Seems like just yesterday you were doing this for me," he said.

I thought back to when we'd found our first horcrux, when Ron was splinched. It had been terrible to see him like that, to know that it was my apparating that caused it.

"No, it doesn't," I said quietly.

He settled down next to me and frowned. "What do you mean?"

"It doesn't seem like yesterday." I stared at the ground. "It was eight years ago. So much has happened since then. We live in a different world now, and we've had different experiences—I mean, for most of the last seven years I didn't even know if you were alive or dead, and we all thought Harry was gone—"

"That doesn't matter anymore." He took my hand. "We may live in a different world, but we're still the same people. And you know what? We're survivors. Always have been, always will be."

I sighed. "That's not what I'm getting at, Ron."

"Then explain to me what you are getting at."

I hesitated, then shook my head. "Nothing, really. Never mind."

He put a hand on my cheek. "You know you can tell me anything, right?"

I let out a small scoff. "No, I can't."

"What are you talking about? Of course you can."

"Fine—I kissed Draco."

"Yeah, I know, I saw you do it multiple times. You were pretending to be his fiancée."

I just stared at the ground. After a minute of silence he spoke, his voice very small.

"You mean you kissed him when you weren't pretending?"

The hurt in his voice stung worse than any of my injuries. I closed my eyes.

"I thought you were dead," I said. "I was emotional and vulnerable—it was over the minute it started—"

"And what about after you found out I was alive?"

I bit my lip. "He kissed me—once! I told him not to—"

"But you didn't stop him?"

There was a pause.

"No, I didn't."

Ron shifted uncomfortably next to me. He let go of my hand. I felt a pain in my chest more intense than my broken ribs.

"I love you, Hermione," he whispered.

"And I love you!"

"But you have feelings for Malfoy."

I glanced up at him. Even though it wasn't a question, he was staring at me with pleading eyes. I sighed.

"I don't know," I muttered. "He thinks I do, but I'm just—confused. I do care about him, but I don't know if what I'm feeling is gratitude for all he's done or—"

"Or love?" Ron offered, his voice cracking.

I shook my head. "No, if anything it would just be attraction. I don't feel the same way about him that I do about you, I don't think I ever could, he just makes me feel so _uncomfortable_—"

"Now I'm confused," he said with a sigh. "'Uncomfortable' isn't usually a word I would associate with someone I wanted to kiss."

"I never said I wanted to kiss him!" I blurted out, suddenly angry. "Both times it just sort of—happened. I don't know what I was thinking the first time, and the second—he caught me off-guard."

"Hermione, when you're in love with someone you don't kiss someone else."

"_He _kissed _me!_"

"And what about the first time?"

"I thought you were dead!" I said, feeling tears start to come to my eyes. "Everything's been so crazy, and he was the only person in the world I had to turn to—I was emotional, and I don't even really know why I did it!"

"Well until you figure out why, maybe we should just be friends."

I stared at him, a lump catching in my throat. "Ron—"

He stood. "I'm going to get some firewood. I'll be back soon."

"Wait!" I called as he walked away. "Ron, come back! Please, I'm sorry, I just—"

He was gone. I buried my face in my hands, my thoughts again flashing back to eight years ago, when he'd left Harry and me alone, walked out on us. I knew that wasn't what he was doing this time, knew he was coming back.

But somehow it felt worse.

"Hermione, are you all right?"

I looked up. Draco was standing over me, a concerned frown on his face. Daphne stood next to him, wearing a similar expression.

"Where's Weasley? Did something happen?"

"I'm fine," I muttered, staring at the ground again. "Ron just went to get some firewood."

"I'm going to set up the tent," Daphne said. Draco sat next to me.

"What's really going on?"

I sighed. "I _really _don't want to talk right now."

"Did you have a fight?"

"And what if we did? Are you going to celebrate?"

He hesitated before answering. "Look, as much as I want Weasley out of the way, I also don't want to see you hurt. And I can tell you're hurting. So whatever the problem is, if I can do anything to help—"

"You can stop playing games with me!" I snapped. "This is the last thing _any _of us need right now. We have horcruxes to find, an entire empire to overthrow—I don't need to be battling with myself too!"

"I'll go help Daphne with the tent," he sighed.

He paused as he stood and looked back down at me. "I was never trying to play games with you," he said softly. "If that's what you think of me—I'm sorry."

Without another word, he turned away and walked to the other side of the clearing. At almost the same time, Ron returned, avoiding making eye contact with anyone. I shut my eyes tightly and held my breath.

This was just perfect.

* * *

**A/N: **You all knew it was coming :P Looking forward to your reviews! Again, remember, I still reserve the right to stick her with whomever I choose ;)


	34. Guilt

**Chapter Thirty-Four: Guilt**

We stayed in the clearing for two days, which was two days longer than I wanted to, but everyone insisted. I knew they were right, that it still wasn't safe to move me, but that didn't mean I was happy about it.

Ron was almost never at camp anymore—he was always coming up with excuses to leave, to go fishing, to check in with the others. Every time he left, my heart broke a little more. He wouldn't look at me, wouldn't speak to me unless he had to. Draco, on the other hand, was going out of his way to be nice to me, which for some reason just made me angry.

The morning of the second day, I found myself alone in the tent. After a few minutes, Daphne came in and forced a smile at me.

"We're hoping to be able to move you tonight," she said. "The new place they're keeping Potter isn't very far from here, and we figure if we use a portkey and we all support you, we should be all right."

I sighed. "Finally."

"I still can't believe he's alive." Daphne sat next to me. "It's just—mind-boggling. First he survived the curse when he was a baby, and then a _second _time, and then he woke up from a seven-year coma—" She shook her head. "That's almost enough to convince me we're going to win without a doubt."

I laughed. "Yeah, it's pretty amazing."

My voice trailed off. Ron was walking past the open tent flap. He glanced at me, but quickly looked away. I sighed.

"Okay, what is going on with you two?" Daphne said quietly.

"Nothing important," I mumbled.

She raised an eyebrow. "Seems pretty important to me."

I stared at the ground. After a minute, she scooted a little closer to me.

"Look," she sighed, "I know we're not really sisters, but you're the closest thing I've got to family right now. I understand if you don't want to, but you can talk to me."

I hesitated. "Things are just complicated between us right now. I confessed something to him, and he overreacted as always. But then there's part of me that's wondering if it _is _an overreaction, and just feeling guilty—"

"What could you possibly have done that was so horrible?"

"I kissed Draco," I blurted out.

Daphne was quiet for a minute. "Do you like him?"

"I don't—maybe?" I let out an exasperated sigh. "I don't know. It's all so complicated. But I don't love him, and I _do_ love Ron."

"Then I don't see what the problem is."

"The problem is Ron's a jealous pig who doesn't know how to forgive," I said wryly.

She stifled a laugh. "It sounds to me like you guys are just having another one of your fights that you'll both get over eventually."

I eyed her curiously. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, come off it! Everyone knew you two liked each other the entire time we were at Hogwarts—it was _painfully _obvious—but neither of you wanted to do anything about it. And then one of you would do something to make the other upset, and you wouldn't speak to each other for a few weeks, and then one day you'd be best friends again."

She was quiet, waiting for me to respond. I just stared at the tent flap. I hoped she was right, but this time felt worse than all the rest combined. I'd really hurt him, and not just by going to the Yule Ball with someone else. The fact that I'd thought he was dead at the time that these feelings started developing didn't really seem to matter.

"If you want my advice," Daphne said with another sigh, "I think you just need to tell Draco what you told me—that your feelings aren't as strong for him as they are for Weasley, and he needs to move on. If you break that thread, I'm sure Weasley will come to his senses. Anyone can see how much he loves you."

I thought about what she said as she walked away. She was right—I did need to talk to Draco. But the last time I tried to do that, I failed miserably. I wasn't sure he was going to give up, no matter what I said, and I didn't want to make things worse.

Still, I had to try.

I didn't get the chance that day—everyone kept themselves busy getting ready to transport me to wherever Harry was. I wished I could help, but there was nothing I could do—I didn't even have a wand.

When nighttime finally came, Ron carried me outside. Even though I was in his arms, he still felt incredibly distant. Draco was setting up the portkey, and he tried to smile at me as we approached. I felt Ron tense up and let out a sigh.

"Hold on tight," said Ron as we neared the portkey. I could hear a hint of the love he held for me in his voice, but it was masked by hurt. It felt like daggers piercing my heart.

The portkey ride was not pleasant, but I knew I could trust Ron not to drop me. Even though I ached, I didn't say anything. I looked around—we were by cliffs again, but this time they were overlooking a valley, not the ocean. We walked for about ten minutes before stopping. We turned to face what appeared to be solid rock, but Draco waved his wand and the mouth of a cave appeared.

Once inside, we reached another dead end, and Draco tapped it in a pattern similar to the diagon alley wall. We entered a large chamber, similar to the one in the cave everyone had been staying in before. But none of my friends were in this cave—all the healers from the hospital were here.

No one said a word as we crossed the chamber and headed down a dark tunnel. There was a light at the end of it, and Harry sat up in his bed as we approached.

"Hermione, it's so good to see you!"

His face fell when he saw the shape I was in. Ginny turned around and gasped.

"Merlin's beard!" she breathed.

I sent Harry a wry smile. "Looks like we'll be going through physical therapy together."

They'd set up another bed in the room, and Ron set me down on it gently.

"Thank you," I said, holding his gaze.

He nodded and managed a small smile. Ginny walked over and set a daily prophet on my lap, interrupting the moment.

"For the first time in seven years, someone beat me for Public Enemy Number One," she said.

I looked at the cover of the prophet and saw a huge picture of myself staring back at me.

I smirked at her. "Sorry to take your title, Gin."

She laughed. A little more of a smile returned to Ron's face.

Three healers came in and started inspecting me. Ginny returned to Harry's bedside. Everyone waited anxiously to hear their verdict. I was glad Ron decided to stay—it reminded me that whatever he was feeling right now, he still cared about me.

"Well?" I said when they'd all stepped back. "How long until I can fight death eaters again?"

"Let's start with walking," one of them said with a small laugh. "You've sustained a pretty bad break, and the fact that you splinched it doesn't help. If we're able to get all the ingredients for the potions and salves we need, we can get you on your feet in about a month. It'll take another couple weeks after that for you to walk normally again."

"And what if we can't get the ingredients you need?"

"Then it'll be at least two months before you can stand again."

"There's no way to speed it up?" I said with a frown.

"Afraid not. Even magic has its limits, and we're short on resources here."

Draco stood from the chair he was sitting in in the corner. "Give me a list. I'll get whatever you need."

I shook my head. "The minute anyone sees you, you'll be killed."

"Then I'll just have to make sure no one sees me, won't I?" he said matter-of-factly.

My frown deepened as he left with the healers. Daphne followed him, saying she'd see if there was anything she could do to help. Ron fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat before standing. I reached out and took his hand as he walked past me.

"Please stay," I said quietly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Harry and Ginny eyeing us curiously, but I tried my best to ignore them. Ron's eyes were filled with an emotion I couldn't quite place as he looked at me—it was something between sadness and longing.

After a long minute, he kissed my hand. "I'll be right back," he said tenderly. "I promise."

I watched him go, not sure exactly what I should feel. After a moment, I realized that Ginny was trying to talk to me, and turned to face her.

"Sorry, didn't quite catch that."

"George and Luna will be here in the morning so we can talk about our next move," she repeated. "We haven't told everyone else Harry's alive yet—we want him to be able to walk in and tell them himself." She smiled lovingly at Harry and ran her fingers through his hair. He returned her smile, and they shared a short kiss. She then stood and left to get some food.

"How long do they think it'll be until that's possible?" I asked Harry. "Until you can walk again, I mean."

He shrugged. "They're not sure. No one knows why I went into the coma—aside from the fact that I was hit with a killing curse—and they can't figure out why I came out of it, either. So it could be weeks, could be months. Aside from my muscles being weak from sleeping for seven years, there's nothing really wrong with me, so we're hoping sooner than later."

"No brain damage?"

He shook his head. "None that they can see. I still can't remember why I went into the forest that night, or exactly what happened leading up to when Riddle cast the curse, but everything else is crystal clear."

I shook my head and stared at the ceiling. "Harry, you are just one miracle after another, aren't you?"

"So are you."

"What do you mean?"

"Gin told me everything that happened," he said, his voice growing somber. "About you being in Azkaban all this time."

I sighed. "Harry, you can't blame yourself—"

"But I do. If I hadn't gone into the forest like that, who knows what would have happened? We could have won, Hermione! None of this ever would have happened!"

"You said yourself there was a reason you went there," I said firmly. "Even though you can't remember that reason, I'm sure it was important. You wouldn't have gone through with it otherwise."

He sighed. "I just wish I did remember."

"We'll figure it out," I said, sending him an encouraging smile. "We always do."

He smirked. "_You _always do. We'd all be lost without you, Herm."

I reached out to him. We were just able to touch each other's hands. I squeezed his.

"Not as lost as we'd be without you."

* * *

**A/N: **More plot, less fill, coming up next! Hang in there! :P


	35. Horcruxes

**Chapter Thirty-Five: Horcruxes**

"You awake, 'Mione?"

I opened my eyes. Ron was standing over me. I sat up a little bit, but he almost immediately made me lay back down.

"I'm glad to see you," I said with a small smile. "I wasn't sure you'd actually come back. Harry's already asleep, and I think everyone else has gone to bed too."

"I'm sorry, I was just—thinking."

Something about the way he was speaking, combined with the way he was looking at me, made my heart jump.

"What were you thinking about?" I asked as he sat down.

He took my hand in his and softly caressed the back of it with his thumb. "I've been a real jerk over the past couple days. I'm sorry."

I let out a sigh. "I'm sorry, too. I should have told you long before now."

"I wouldn't have handled it any better," he said with a smirk.

I smirked back. "No, probably not."

We both chuckled. He squeezed my hand.

"In all honesty, if it had been anyone else, I wouldn't have been nearly as upset." He shook his head. "I just don't get what you could possibly see in him."

I knew continuing this line of conversation would only lead to another argument, so I changed it. "You don't have anything you need to confess to me, do you?"

He blinked. "What would I need to confess?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Ron, I was in Azkaban for seven years, and you were out here. You can't tell me there wasn't _one time_ you were attracted to someone else."

"Honestly, there wasn't," he said. "There were a couple times Luna reminded me of you, but in those moments I wasn't attracted to her—I was remembering you, and wishing you were there."

After a minute, I sighed again and looked at the ceiling. "I'm so sorry," I whispered.

He brushed the hair off of my face and kissed my forehead. There was another moment of silence before either of us spoke.

"Maybe we should take this slow," I said cautiously. "Start over."

He nodded. "Sounds like a good idea." He paused. "What about Malfoy?"

"Let me talk to him before you do anything stupid," I said.

He chuckled. "Fair enough. But if he tries to kiss you again—"

"I give you permission to stun him."

He smirked. "Now I kind of hope he tries."

I punched his arm playfully, cringing as I realized I'd used my bad hand. His playful smirk immediately turned into a look of concern.

"Are you all right?"

"I just need something for the pain," I said through clenched teeth. "And maybe something to help me sleep."

"I'll go find a healer." He stood up, but paused and looked back down at me. "I love you, Hermione."

I raised an eyebrow. "What happened to taking it slow?"

"Whoops." He smirked again, then left the room.

I closed my eyes as he walked out of the room and held my breath. My hand _really _hurt.

"What was that all about?"

I jumped and held back a scream. "_Merlin, _Harry! I thought you were asleep!"

He looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "What was that about Malfoy?"

I groaned. "Can we talk about it later? Heaven knows we're going to have enough time alone in this room together."

He chuckled. "All right. Good night, Herm." He rolled over and went back to sleep. I sighed.

I couldn't wait to be focusing on horcruxes again.

* * *

George and Luna were elated to see me when they arrived, but not half as excited as they were to see Harry. A few minutes after they walked, another familiar face entered the room.

"You're welcome, Seamus," I said before he had a chance to speak.

He shook his head. "I wasn't going to say thank you. I was going to beg for your forgiveness. They caught you because of me, didn't they? Because I recognized you?"

"That's not important," I said with a wave of my hand.

"Seamus!" Harry said with a wide grin. "Good to see you!"

Seamus did a double take, noticing Harry for the first time. His eyes opened wide and his jaw dropped. I tried not to laugh—it hurt when I did—but I couldn't stop myself.

"But you're—you were—how did you—_what in Merlin's name is going on_?"

"You guys brought him here and didn't tell him?" I said to Luna and George.

George shrugged, a mischievous smirk on his face. "Where would have been the fun on that?"

Seamus continued to gape at Harry until Ginny came in and forced him to sit down. She was followed by Ron, who took a seat next to my bed. He sent me a small smile.

"How's your hand?"

"Fine," I said with a grimace.

He smirked. "You shouldn't have punched me."

"Well, don't give me a reason to in the future," I said playfully.

"All right," said George, standing between mine and Harry's beds. "Shall we get started?"

"Wait, where are Daphne and Draco?" I asked.

"You want two Slytherins and past Death Eaters in here with us?" Seamus said with a scoff.

"The fact that they were in Slytherin means nothing, and their connections to the Empire is exactly why they _should _be in here."

"I agree with Hermione," Harry said before anyone else could object. "They could have valuable information we need."

"But can we trust them?" Seamus asked.

"Yes," I said firmly.

Luna volunteered to fetch them, and the rest of us chatted as we waited. When she returned, Draco and Daphne in tow, Draco grinned around the room. His eyes rested on me.

"Glad to be included," he said. "What are we talking about?"

"Horcruxes," Harry answered.

Daphne frowned. "What?"

We quickly explained to her what a horcrux was, that we destroyed the first six, how we thought Voldemort had used some magical artifacts from Egypt and Greece to make new ones, and where we thought they might be hidden.

"Artifacts?" she said with a small frown. "You mean like a staff or a helmet?"

"Possibly," said George, eyeing her curiously. "What do you know?"

"It may be nothing, but my father has a goblin-made helmet in our vault at Gringotts that he got sometime after the battle of Hogwarts, while I was in Azkaban. I asked him about it once, and he said it was a gift from the Emperor and wouldn't say anything else. I remember thinking it was strange, because normally he'd have something like that displayed in the house."

"But it's just an old helmet," Seamus said with a frown. "Where's the significance in that?"

"Goblin-made artifacts are quite rare," I said, "and quite valuable. And they'd be ideal for horcruxes, since—"

"They only take in that which makes them stronger," Harry said with a groan. "How are we supposed to destroy goblin-made horcruxes?"

"With another goblin-made object," Ron said matter-of-factly. "We need to find the sword."

"Any idea what happened to it after the battle?" I asked.

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but Draco cleared his throat, interrupting him. "Mind cluing the rest of us in?"

Everyone was staring at the three of us, confusion written on their faces. Harry, Ron, and I exchanged a smile. For a moment, it felt like it was just the three of us again, camping in the woods, plotting our next move.

"You guys remember the sword Neville used to slay Nagini, the Dark Lord's snake?" said Ron.

There were various nods and murmurs of "Yeah," and "Sure," from our friends.

"That's the Sword of Gryffindor," I said. "It's uniquely equipped to destroy horcruxes, especially if they're goblin-made."

"How do we know he didn't make it into a horcrux?" said Daphne, a mix of concern and confusion in her voice.

"I don't think he'd be able to," said Harry. "Only a true Gryffindor can wield the sword."

Draco scoffed, causing everyone to turn toward him. "Nice ideals, Potter, but I don't think that would stop the Emperor."

"We've seen the sword disappear and reappear at will," said Ron, his tone a little harsher than it should be. "Including after the Battle of Hogwarts." He caught my eye, then Ginny's. "Remember when we ran up to help Neville, and were surrounded? The sword was there as we were running, but it was gone by the time we were captured."

"Who's to say someone didn't just pick it up?" argued Draco.

"Whatever the case," I said before Ron could respond, "we need it. If it's a horcrux, we'll just have to figure out a way to destroy it. If it's not, we can use it to destroy the others. So, any ideas where it could be? Or where any of the other horcruxes might be located?"

"You mentioned something about a staff," said Ginny, looking up at Daphne. "You think it might be another horcrux?"

"I don't know as much about that one," Daphne said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I just heard my father talking about an old staff that needed to be taken to Hogwarts and hidden. It didn't sound like he understood why, just that he was following orders."

"It makes sense he'd hide one of them at Hogwarts," I said thoughtfully. "He wouldn't use the Room of Requirement again, or the Chamber, but there are probably a hundred secret rooms and chambers that aren't even on the Marauder's Map."

"And he could always create a new one," said Ron.

Seamus stood. "Well, we should start with Miss Greengrass's family vault and find that helmet."

I shook my head. "No. Last time, we were able to go after them one by one because You-Know-Who didn't know we knew about them. This time, we'll need to know where all of them are and strike all at once, otherwise he'll just make more."

"Sounds like a good plan, Hermione," Harry said quickly. "Now, why don't we all take a break for lunch? I think I smell something cooking in the main room."

Everyone eyed him curiously, but didn't argue. One by one, Seamus, Luna, George, Daphne, and Draco left. Ron and Ginny stood, but Harry shook his head.

"You two stay."

I frowned at him as the Weasleys sat back down. "Harry, what was that all about?"

"I remember why I went into the forest that night. Why I had to die."

He looked at each of us in turn, his expression grim.

"I was a horcrux."

* * *

**A/N: **Not exactly a revelation for us, but definitely a revelation for the characters! Looking forward to your reviews :)


	36. Revelations

**Chapter Thirty-Six: Revelations**

"_What_?" Ron and Ginny said simultaneously. I just stared at him, trying to wrap my brain around what he'd said.

"I don't think Riddle did it on purpose," he said, sounding as if he were grasping at straws. "I think it just sort of happened when the curse backfired when I was a baby."

"Harry, that's insane," said Ron. "I think you would have known if a part of You-Know-Who's soul had been inside of you."

"It explains a lot, actually," I muttered. "The 'visions' you kept having, why you could speak parseltongue," I caught his gaze, "how you survived the killing curse a second time."

"But it's crazy!" Ron repeated.

"When I was in Narcissa Malfoy's memory, I saw You-Know-Who fall to the ground after he 'killed' Harry," I said firmly. "Why else would that have happened? It's not like he hadn't used that curse before."

"So, what does that mean?" said Ginny softly. "Is the piece of his soul—whatever was inside you—is it gone?"

We were all very quiet. After a long minute, Harry shook his head.

"I—I don't know. I think so."

"Well do you feel—different?" asked Ron.

"I've been in a coma for seven years, so nothing feels exactly normal," he snapped.

Ron frowned. "Sorry, mate, I didn't mean—"

"No, I'm sorry." Harry sighed. "I'm just a bit—on edge."

Ginny bit her lip. "Maybe we should hold off discussing more about the horcruxes until tomorrow."

Harry shook his head. "No, focusing on beating Riddle once and for all is exactly what I need right now. But I think it goes without saying—I don't really want the others to know about this, all right?"

We all nodded. Ginny looked especially troubled, but didn't say anything else on the matter. She and Ron left to join the others, and to bring us back some food. When we were alone, I looked at Harry once more. I could see turmoil on his face, the same expression I'd seen countless times. He was doubting himself, questioning everything.

"No matter what," I said gently, "you're still the Chosen One."

He let out a small scoff and turned to face me. "And what if I still have a part of him inside of me?"

"Never stopped you before," I said, sending him a half-smile.

"Maybe that's why we've never been able to beat him." He was staring at the ceiling, not listening to me anymore. "Because there's a piece of him _in _me, because I'm too much like him—"

"You're _nothing _like him!" I said, cringing as I sat up.

"How do you know?" he said quietly.

I resisted the urge to laugh—he wouldn't respond well to that right now.

"Harry, look at me."

Reluctantly, he turned his head.

"You remember when Ron left us, right?" I said.

He nodded. "Like it was yesterday."

"That was because of the locket," I continued. "He'd just been _wearing _a horcrux, and it brought out all his anger, all his frustration—it made him turn against his best friends. If you've _been _a horcrux, this whole time, you certainly haven't shown it. Every dark urge you've ever had, you've fought against, and chosen the good."

Something caught in my throat. "Harry, you're the best friend I've ever had. You're kind, caring, selfless—you _died _for us, for heaven's sake!"

I couldn't read his expression, but his eyes seemed a little watery. Mine were, too.

"You are _nothing_ like him," I said emphatically. "And I don't ever want to hear you say that again."

"All right," he said, his voice cracking as he sent me a warm smile. "Whatever you say."

"You know I'm right," I said with a small smirk. "I always am."

Harry chuckled as everyone else returned. Ron and Ginny both looked concerned when they saw the tears in our eyes, but I assured them without words that there was nothing to be worried about. I caught Harry's eye once more before we resumed our discussion on horcruxes, and he smiled.

* * *

The next few hours were, to say the least, painful. Draco and Daphne confirmed our suspicion that Voldemort had two personal vaults in Gringotts in addition to the ones at his home and in the Old Ministry, but we were no closer to figuring out which vaults they were or what spells and enchantments he had protecting his horcruxes this time (in addition to the security at Gringotts, which I'm sure had increased since our last 'visit' there). As for what the horcruxes actually were, the helmet and staff were our only leads.

"They're probably all goblin-made," I said at length. "He'd want to make them as strong as possible this time, especially since his soul's been broken up into so many fragments already."

"So, all armor then?" George suggested.

"Not necessarily. The tiara Fleur wore at her wedding was goblin-made, and there used to be some silver goblets at Grimmauld Place made by goblins. But we're definitely looking for old objects, with lots of magical history—" I glanced at Luna. "You didn't happen to grab any history books from the Hogwarts library, did you?"

"I have a few," she said with a smile. "Would you like me to bring them to you?"

"Yes, please. Then maybe I can actually do something useful while lying in this bed."

"And what are we supposed to do in the meantime?" Seamus said with a slight frown. "We had plans to get into the Old Ministry, but if you say we should wait to get all of them at once—"

"We need to prepare to face the enchantments he has set up," said Harry. "They won't just be protected by Death Eaters and locked vault doors. The kind of magic he uses to protect them—it's unlike anything most of you have ever seen, and I'm sure it's even more powerful this time around."

"How do you suggest we do that?" Seamus asked.

I caught Draco's eye. "What I wouldn't give to have access to your library right now."

He smirked. "You may not have the library, but you do have me."

Everyone eyed him curiously. He went on. "Unlike the rest of you, I've actually done dark magic. While I may not know the exact enchantments the Emperor used, I know how it works. I can train you, and the rest of 'Dumbledore's Army,' to fight more effectively against it."

"I can help with that," said Daphne eagerly.

I looked around the room. Seamus, Luna, George, and Ginny all looked very uncomfortable, but they weren't saying anything. I couldn't quite read Ron's expression, but it definitely didn't seem like he liked the idea. Harry, on the other hand, was eyeing Draco thoughtfully.

Suddenly, he turned and looked at me. "Hermione, what do you think?"

I hesitated, put on the spot. I looked back at Draco. There was an emotion behind his eyes I couldn't place, but something about it bolstered my confidence.

"I think that's a great idea," I said. "It's exactly the sort of training we need."

Draco's lips curved into a smile. Everyone else still looked slightly uncomfortable, but there was no doubt in my mind we could trust him.

We wrapped up the conversation, and one by one everyone left the room. Draco walked to my bedside just before he left and squeezed my hand.

"Thanks, Hermione."

I sent him a small smile. "Just remember what I said—about going too far."

"I promise you have nothing to worry about," he said.

He lingered for a minute. I could tell from the way he was looking at me that he wanted to kiss me again—if Harry hadn't been stuck in the same room as us, he probably would have. I felt a slight blush come to my cheeks and broke eye contact. After a moment, he released my hand and left. Almost as soon as he was gone, Harry sat straight up in his bed and stared at me.

"Is that what I _think _it was?"

"Harry—"

"The way he was looking at you—_that's _what you and Ron were talking about last night?"

I sighed. "Can we not do this right now?"

"You're blushing!" he said in disbelief. "I mean, _Malfoy_, of _all people_—"

"Okay, I get it!" I threw up my hands. "But like I told Ron, I'm going to talk to him, all right?"

He shook his head. "I guess it's not really any of my business, but _Merlin_, Hermione—"

"Got it," I said through clenched teeth.

He stared at me another minute before lying back down. "Just please tell me that wasn't why you supported his idea," he muttered.

"I supported his idea because it was good," I said defensively.

"All right then."

We fell into an uncomfortable silence. Had I been alone, I would have screamed into my pillow. As it was, I just stared at the ceiling angrily.

* * *

**A/N: **Yeah, I couldn't come up with a better chapter title for this one...I guess it works :P Looking forward to your reviews! You guys are amazing :D


	37. Research

**Chapter Thirty-Seven: Research**

Luna returned the next day with an armful of books. She and Harry both laughed at the expression of pure delight that crossed over my face. I ignored them—it wasn't the books I was really excited about, anyway. It was the chance to _do_ something while I was stuck in that bed.

"I think there are a few more in the bag, but these are the only ones I found last night," she said.

"This is great," I said with a smile. "Thanks, Luna."

"Think I could help?" said Harry as she left.

"Of course," I said, passing him one of the books. I knew he was just as restless as I was, if not more so.

"What are we looking for exactly?"

"Any mention of old, goblin-made objects that might be found in Egypt or Greece."

Harry nodded, and we set to work. We didn't read very long before the healers came in for our physical therapy. It was frustrating how much it hurt to just lift my leg, to move at all in fact. Harry sent me encouraging smiles every time I groaned.

Each day passed like this—reading until we were interrupted by physical therapy, and occasionally sitting down with everyone else and getting reports on any new discoveries they made. Progress was very slow—after the break-in at his palace, and discovering who I really was, Voldemort had increased all of his security greatly.

"Didn't you say you had someone inside the Ministry, Gin?" I asked.

Ginny sighed. "Yes, but we haven't heard from him in ages."

"Jugson's probably just being careful," said George.

"But it's not like him to go so long without _any _contact."

"Wait, Jugson?" said Harry, raising his eyebrows. "The Death Eater?"

Ginny nodded. "We were skeptical at first, but he's earned our trust."

"Albert Jugson?" Draco mused. "He and my father were friends."

"My father never liked him," Daphne said with a frown. "Said he was sloppy and lazy. I never got the feeling he suspected him of being a traitor, though."

"Well, let's hope he's still not suspected," said Ginny. "If we can get in contact with him again, we can find out more about the new security measures at the Old Ministry, and possibly even Gringotts."

"What we really need is someone who can disable the security cameras," I said. "Even if we can get in there and beat the enchantments, it'll mean nothing if they can see our every move."

"We should go to London, then," Seamus piped up. "Me dad's there, helping the muggles fight against the Death Eaters. I'm sure he knows someone who can take care of those for us, or at least teach us."

"You shouldn't go alone," said Harry as Seamus stood.

"I'll go!" Daphne said, practically jumping out of her seat. "I've spent a good amount of time in the city, I know my way around."

"All right then, Miss Greengrass," Seamus held out his arm, "shall we?"

Daphne stifled a giggle as they walked out together. I resisted the urge to raise my eyebrows.

While everyone else was our observing our different potential targets, Harry and I continued to focus on research. As soon as we'd finish going through the books we had, Luna would bring us new ones. I had no idea where she was getting them, but soon our room looked like a very unorganized library.

After about a week, Harry closed his current book, _Magical Fact and Fiction_, with a loud grunt.

"This isn't working," he muttered. "I feel like we're looking for Flamel all over again."

"We found Flamel eventually," I said, turning the page in my book.

Harry sat up and picked up the next book in his pile. "Maybe we're focusing on the wrong thing. Why are we looking at Egypt and Greece again?"

"Because that's where You-Know-Who picked up the artifacts he's using."

"But maybe they're not _from _there," Harry said. "Maybe he stole them from a collector, like he did with Hepzibah Smith."

"Okay," I said, slowly putting down my book. "That would mean they could be from anywhere."

"They're probably still all goblin-made, and have some sort of significance, but I think we're looking at the wrong place."

I glanced at our pile of read books. "We should go through those again, broaden our focus—see if there's anything we dismissed because it wasn't from Egypt or Greece."

"Any way I can help?"

We both looked up. Draco had entered the room while we were talking and was leaning against the doorway, arms crossed.

"You can stack those into a neat pile by my bed, so I can reach them," I said.

He did so, smiling up at me occasionally. Harry opened his book and focused on it intently.

No, I hadn't confronted Draco yet. Even though I'd confided in Harry everything that had happened up to this point, I still didn't feel comfortable talking with Draco while he was in the room. At least he understood that, unlike _some _people.

"I'm going to talk to him, Ron!"

"When?" Ron demanded, a scowl on his face. "Before or after he kisses you again?"

"_Merlin_,you're impossible!"

"You two might want to keep it down," said Harry quietly. "These walls do echo, you know."

"I don't understand why you can't just talk to him right now!"

"Because I don't think Harry would enjoy being in the same room as that conversation."

"I don't enjoy being in the same room as _this _conversation," he mumbled.

Ron rounded on him. "Don't tell me you're siding with her!"

Harry groaned. "Do _not _try to make me pick sides."

"This is ridiculous! She should talk to him and put an end to this once and for all."

"I _will_, Ronald! Are you not listening to me?"

"No, I've been watching you," he said, his scowl deepening. "Every time he comes in the room, every time he speaks to you—I think the real reason you haven't talked to him yet is because you have feelings for him, and your feelings for me aren't as strong as I thought."

"Oh get _over _yourself!" I yelled. "It has nothing to do with you!"

"It has _everything _to do with me!"

Ron stormed out of the room. I let out a sound halfway between a growl and a sigh.

Harry hesitated a moment before speaking. "Do you have feelings—?"

"Shut up!"

He didn't need to be told twice. I picked up another book and buried my nose in it.

* * *

**A/N: **A little short, but it's a chapter! I have some exciting things planned for the future, so keep reading! :D


	38. Presents

**Chapter Thirty-Eight: Presents**

The next day, Luna came bouncing into the room with yet another armful of books and a huge grin on her face.

"Happy birthday!" she said as she set them on the ever-growing pile next to my bed. "I found some more books for you to take a look at."

"Thanks Luna," I said with a chuckle.

As she straightened the pile, what she'd said actually registered, and I looked up from the book that was in my hands.

"Wait—is it actually my birthday?"

She laughed. "Yes, it is! The 19th of September, right?"

"Yeah." I laughed as well. "I had no idea that was today."

"Really?" Harry said, sending me a sideways grin. "Ginny and I have been talking about it while you were sleeping. I was sure you were awake at least one of the times."

"Nope. I had no idea it was coming up."

"Then, surprise!" came Ginny's voice from the doorway.

I sat up. She entered, carrying a small birthday cake, followed by Ron. I grinned as she set the cake on my lap and Ron lit the candles with his wand. The two of them started singing "Happy Birthday," and Harry and Luna joined in. I couldn't help but laugh.

"I can't remember the last time I celebrated anyone's birthday, let alone my own," I said once they'd finished singing.

Ron smirked. "In case you forgot, you're supposed to blow out the candles and make a wish."

I stuck my tongue out at him before doing so. They all clapped.

"And as your present," Ginny sat at the foot of my bed, "Jugson finally made contact with us. He was being investigated, which is why we hadn't heard from him in a while, but it looks like he's in the clear. He's looking into both Gringotts and the Old Ministry for us."

"What about the palace?"

"He's walking on thin ice, so he doesn't want to go anywhere that might seem suspicious. We'll have to find out about the palace's security some other way."

"Okay," I sighed. "And Hogwarts? What's our way in there?"

"Well, we could always try to go through Hogsmeade again," Harry said with a shrug. "There's bound to be a way in."

Ginny shook her head. "If there is, no one knows about it. All the old passageways—the one-eyed witch passageway, the shrieking shack, Ariana's portrait—they've been blocked off on both sides."

"What if we went through the forbidden forest?" I suggested. "I know that wouldn't exactly be smooth sailing, but—"

"No good either," Ron said with a slight frown. "There's a shield surrounding the castle one mile in every direction. There's no way to get through it or over it."

I thought for a minute. "What about under it?"

"Well, if the passageways from Hogsmeade still worked, sure, but they're no good—"

I shook my head. "No. I'm talking about the lake."

"That's not a bad idea," said Harry eagerly. "Someone could swim underneath it, find their way inside the castle, and reopen one of the passageways to let the rest of us in."

Ginny frowned. "You don't think the shield would extend to the bottom of the lake?"

"That lake's so deep, I doubt even Riddle could cast a spell to touch the bottom."

"Okay, but who's going to volunteer to swim to the bottom of a freezing, creature-filled lake?" said Ron.

"I will."

Everyone looked up. Draco was standing in the doorway, one hand behind his back as if he were holding something.

"I'm more than a decent swimmer," he said when no one responded, "and I've been at the school more recently than the rest of you, so I know my way around. I'll be the one to swim under the barrier."

We all looked at Harry. After a minute he nodded. Draco grinned.

"I see I'm late for the song," he said as he continued to walk into the room, "but happy birthday, Hermione."

He pulled a long, narrow box out from behind his back and offered it to me. My lips split into a huge smile before I even opened it.

"Is this what I think it is?" I said excitedly.

He smirked. "Just open it."

I did, and squealed as I pulled out a beautiful twelve-inch wand.

"I know you've been going crazy without one," he said, holding back a laugh. "I tried to find one that was similar to your old one—vine, dragon heartstring. It's a little longer, though."

I waved it and lifted all the books in the room into the air at once. With another flick of my wrist, they were all back in two perfectly straight piles between mine and Harry's beds.

"It's perfect," I said, beaming up at him. "Thank you."

He grinned. "You're welcome."

He held my gaze for a moment, and I tried not to pay attention to the frown that appeared on Ron's face. Draco then turned and faced Harry, reaching into his pocket.

"I've got one for you too, Potter." He withdrew another wand and tossed it at him. "It's a ten-inch holly with a unicorn hair—afraid there were no phoenix feathers in the shop."

"That's fine," Harry said with a small smile. "Thank you, Draco."

"Where did you get these?" said Ron, his tone sounding unnecessarily hostile.

"I stole them from the new wand shop in Diagon Alley," Draco said matter-of-factly. "Do you have a problem with that?"

"You went to Diagon Alley by yourself?" I blurted out before Ron could respond. "What were you thinking?"

"That the two of you needed wands, and it was the most direct way to get some for you."

Ron folded his arms. "Next time, you should consult one of us."

"Why?" Draco scoffed. "I went there, got the wands, and got out. Involving anyone else would have just slowed me down. Besides, it's not like you'd be upset if I were killed, Weasley."

"No, I wouldn't," Ron said through his teeth.

Draco sighed. "Happy birthday, Hermione," he said again with a small smile before leaving.

The room was quiet for a few minutes. Luna followed him out, saying she was going to check in with the healers for us. Ginny got off of my bed and moved over to Harry's, and the two of them admired his new wand. As Ron sat down next to me, I let out a small sigh.

"That was entirely unnecessary," I muttered.

"He put us all in danger! What if he'd been captured, and the Dark Lord read his mind and found us?"

"Well, he wasn't, so I don't see what the problem is."

"The problem is he did it to impress you, and it worked."

"Not today, Ron," I said with another sigh. "Please."

After another minute of silence, he stood.

"Look, if you can't bring yourself to talk to him, I will."

"Like I've been telling you—I _will _talk to him. Right now's just not the right time."

"And when will the right time be?" he snapped.

"Get me a fork, would you?" I said, forcing myself not to scream at him. "I'd like to eat some of this cake."

He grumbled as he left the room. I reopened the book on my lap, practically fuming. Even on my birthday, he had to start a fight.

I turned the page just as he reentered the room, and noticed something interesting. Ron tried to hand me my cake, but I hardly even noticed.

"Where's Daphne?" I asked.

"Still in London with Seamus," Ginny responded. "They should be coming back soon though."

"Did you find something?" Harry said, leaning forward.

"Maybe," I muttered. I turned the page again, reading more. Ron read over my shoulder.

"Antioch Peverell?" he said with a frown. "Isn't that the name of the first brother? The one who made the elder wand?"

I nodded. "The story says he used the elder wand to kill another wizard, right? Well, in this version it talks about how the other wizard owned a goblin-made dagger that Antioch claimed was his, and that's what they were fighting about. Granted, it's not proven history, but—"

"That fits!" Harry exclaimed. "It's goblin-made, and it's connected to the elder wand."

"We should focus our research on the known owners of the elder wand," I said, starting to get excited. "Maybe more of them had goblin-made objects."

Harry immediately picked up the book closest to him. Ginny grabbed one as well and opened it up to the table of contents. Ron stood awkwardly for a moment before he set my cake back down, took a seat, and tentatively reached for a book. When I didn't object, he opened it up and started skimming. After a minute, he looked up at me.

"I'm sorry," he sighed.

I glanced at him, but didn't respond and returned my attention to the book. I was still mad at him.

* * *

**A/N: **Phew! I did it, guys! For a while there I wasn't sure I was going to get a chapter posted today, and that would have broken my pattern! :P But here it is! Another laying-around chapter, but they're slowly making progress toward being ready for the final battle with Voldemort.

I'll try to write more over the next couple days and get more into the action (stupid Harry and Hermione for needing physical therapy...grr...) but I hope this chapter's enough to keep you interested until then! Thanks again for all your amazing support!


	39. Discovery

**Chapter Thirty-Nine: Discovery**

I spent the next three days buried in books, even during my physical therapy (which the healers did not necessarily approve of). Harry was just as eager as I was to discover exactly what the Dark Lord's new horcruxes were. With each goblin-made item we found, our excitement grew. Everything was falling into place.

Meanwhile, Draco stopped visiting as often. I knew he was spending more time with the rest of the DA, teaching them how to combat dark enchantments, but for some reason it hurt that he wasn't spending time with me. Ron swore up and down that he didn't threaten Draco or anything, but I wasn't sure I believed him.

Harry refused to be a part of any of our conversations anymore—they always turned into shouting matches. I thought about what Daphne said, back in the clearing when I'd first told Ron I kissed Draco, about how we'd both eventually get over it like we always did at Hogwarts. It certainly didn't seem like that was going to be the case.

Still, I had to admit there was a basis for Ron's anger. If I were in his shoes, I wouldn't be thrilled about the fact that he hadn't put whatever girl was after him in her place yet. But, as I pointed out to Ron, I couldn't talk to Draco if he wouldn't visit me. He finally conceded (with a small bit of persuasion from Harry) that until Draco and I could be in a room alone, there wasn't much point in arguing about it. Instead, he started giving me the silent treatment, which wasn't much better.

I was buried in books again, still mad after our most recent fight, when I heard someone walk into the room and looked up.

"I heard you wanted to see me?"

"Daphne!" I exclaimed, setting aside my current book. "Come here!"

She eyed me curiously as I picked up another book and flipped through the pages until I found the one I'd marked. I pointed to the illustration.

"Does this helmet look anything like the one in your father's vault?"

She examined it and slowly nodded. "Yeah, it looks similar. Is this it?"

"I think so," I said, my lips splitting into a grin. "It's only a legend, but this helmet was owned by Egbert the Egregious, one of the Masters of the Elder Wand."

"The what?"

"The wand Riddle's been using," said Harry. He pulled out another book, opened it, and pointed to an illustration of a staff. "This belonged to Emeric the Evil, the Master of the Elder Wand before Egbert. They say he had it commissioned by goblins as symbol of his power."

"Both goblin-made, and both connected to the Emperor's wand," Daphne said with raised eyebrows. "That has to be more than a coincidence."

"We've also found a dagger, a ring, and a breastplate," I said, "all goblin-made, and all owned by Masters of the Elder Wand."

"That's five objects," said Daphne with a slight frown. "I thought you said there were six."

"We're still working on the last one," I said as I picked back up the book I'd set aside, "but so far we haven't been able to find any goblin-made objects connected to the other known owners of the wand."

"I still think it's got to be something that's connected to Slytherin," Harry said firmly.

"But the rest of them aren't," I argued.

Daphne picked up the book Harry set aside and looked at the picture of the staff. After a minute, she spoke.

"It says here that Emeric the Evil's staff was modeled after another one—Herpo the Foul's?"

Harry and I both froze.

"Who did you say?" I asked.

"Herpo the Foul? Apparently he had a staff like this one, but with a snake for the head." She looked up from the book. "Who was he?"

Harry took the book from her and read it himself. "He was the first person to breed a basilisk, right Hermione?"

"He did much more than that," I said, closing my book. "He's called 'the Foul' for a reason. He lived in Ancient Greece, and he invented all sorts of dark spells and enchantments. He was also a parselmouth, and he's credited with creating the first horcrux."

"Sounds like number six to me," Daphne muttered.

Harry and I both nodded in agreement. We caught each other's eye, and all of the sudden a burst of excitement ran through my system.

"We know 'what,' and we know 'where,'" said Harry, his eyes shining.

I grinned. "Now we just need to figure out 'how' and 'when'!"

"I have a friend who may be able to help with that," came a voice from the doorway.

I looked up and my grin widened. "Welcome back, Seamus. Any luck in London?"

"Yeah, Daph and I were lucky and found me dad easily." He sat next to Daphne and put an arm around her shoulder. "It helped that she knew the city so well."

I glanced at Seamus's arm, then caught Daphne's eye. She tried to hide a blush.

"Were you able to find someone who could take care of the security cameras?" asked Harry, apparently unfazed by their familiarity.

"Yeah, his name is Wendell Wilkins. We're going to pick him up in a couple days—Hermione, are you all right?"

I was staring at him, frozen, eyes wide. I couldn't breathe.

Daphne frowned, reached out and touched my hand. "What's wrong?"

"What did you say his name was?" I muttered.

"Wendell Wilkins," Seamus repeated. "Nice bloke. He was a dentist before the war—lived in Australia—but he's become sort of an expert on security cameras and—okay, Hermione, what's wrong?"

My hands shook as I set the book I was holding on the pile next to my bed. Everyone stared at me, waiting for me to say something. But I couldn't bring myself to say it, because it couldn't possibly be true—

"He's my father," I breathed.

* * *

**A/N: **A short chapter, but a pretty important one :P Looking forward to your reviews, as always! :)


	40. Truce

**Chapter Forty: Truce**

I was still in shock. I'd accepted the fact that my parents were dead, that I was never going to see them again, and that they died without remembering they had a daughter. Hearing that my father was alive was almost as unbelievable as when Draco told me Harry was alive. It couldn't be true—the Dark Lord had found my parents in Australia, burned them over parliament—

At some point, Ginny and Ron had entered the room. Ron took a seat next to my bed and tried to hold my hand.

"Calm down, 'Mione—"

"You told me they were dead!" I said, my breath quickening. "That they were the burned bodies—"

"I told you we thought the rumors were true, but they were always just rumors," he said, putting a hand on my shoulder. He was smiling. "But your father's alive! That's great news, isn't it?"

I looked at Seamus again. "He introduced himself as Wendell Wilkins?"

Seamus nodded. He looked very confused. "We talked about you. He didn't say anything about being your dad."

"That's because he doesn't remember," Harry said when I didn't respond. "She modified her parents memories before we went off in search of horcruxes the first time."

"Why would he be fighting in the war if he doesn't remember anything about me?" I said to myself. "Why would he be back in England? And _when_ did he learn about security cameras?"

"You can ask him yourself," Daphne said. She was smiling. "We're bringing him here in a couple days."

I couldn't quite describe what I was feeling. My heart was racing, and it was still hard to breathe. The thought of seeing my father again seemed almost unreal. I was excited, but for some reason also incredibly nervous.

"He doesn't remember me," I muttered. "What do I—how am I supposed to act?"

"You could restore his memories," said Ron. "Wasn't that always the plan?"

"It's been eight years," I breathed. "Even if I had the elder wand, I don't know if I'd be able to reverse the spell after so long."

"You could explain to him what happened," Ginny suggested.

"That would go over well," I said sarcastically. "Hi, I'm your daughter, and I put a spell on you so you couldn't remember me. Oh, and by the way, your name's not Wendell Wilkins."

"So what do you want to do?" Daphne asked. "Pretend you don't know him?"

Everyone waited for me to respond. I bit my lip.

"I don't know," I said at length. "I—I don't want to scare him away or anything..."

"How about this," Ron said gently, "you try to reverse the memory charm. If it doesn't work, you get to know him—figure out what his life's been like for the past eight years, figure out what happened to your mother. Then, when the time is right, you can tell him who you really are."

Slowly, I nodded. After a minute of silence, Seamus, Daphne, and Ginny all left the room. Ron stayed where he was, holding my hand. He reached up with his free hand and played with the hair around my face.

"Do you need anything?" he asked.

I caught his gaze and stared into his eyes. After a minute, I used my free hand to take a hold of the one playing with my hair.

"I need this to stop," I sighed. "One minute you're being sweet and thoughtful, and the next—half the time I feel like you hate me!"

I felt tears threaten to come to my eyes. I hadn't realized how hard the past few weeks had been on me, how much pain I was going through.

"I can't deal with it anymore, Ron," I said softly. "It hurts."

He stared at me for a long time without saying anything. Then slowly, cautiously, he leaned forward. As we kissed, my tears started to fall. For the first time since I'd told him the truth, he didn't seem distant. He pulled away, just enough so he could see my face, and wiped my tears.

"I've been a downright git," he whispered. "Can you ever forgive me?"

My lips quivered as I looked at him. As I opened my mouth to respond, I glanced over his shoulder and saw someone enter the room.

"Draco!"

Ron released both my hands and stood as Draco approached my bed. I saw him tense up slightly, but he wasn't scowling like usual.

"Daphne told me what happened," Draco said, a look of concern on his face. "Are you all right?"

"I'm feeling a lot of emotions right now," I said, glancing sideways at Ron. "But I'm glad he's alive."

"What about your mum? Any news about her?"

I shook my head. "Unfortunately, no."

He sent me a sideways smile. "Well, at least there's hope."

Despite everything I was feeling, I managed to smile back. After a minute, Draco broke eye contact and turned to face Ron.

"I was hoping you'd help me with the next training exercise, Weasley," he said, sounding very diplomatic.

Ron raised his eyebrows. "Me?"

"You're the only person, aside from Potter and Hermione, who's actually faced a horcrux before," he said matter-of-factly. "_I _haven't even dealt with magic that dark. I think you'd be a real—asset—in helping everyone prepare to fight them."

There was a tense pause before Ron spoke. "Sure, why not?"

Draco grinned. "Great. I'm looking forward to working with you."

"Is there anything Hermione and I could do to help?" Harry asked.

All three of us jumped. We'd momentarily forgotten he was in the room.

"For the moment, no," Draco said with a slight smile. "Just get better."

After a few more awkward minutes, both Draco and Ron left the room, each of them catching my eye before they left. I stared at my hands, uncomfortable.

Harry cleared his throat, breaking the silence. "Well, that was..."

I sighed. "I'm sorry."

Harry shook his head. "I'd take that over one of your and Ron's shouting matches any day."

"Yeah," I said with a slight chuckle.

We were both quiet for a minute before Harry spoke again. "Listen, Herm, if you ever want to talk—"

"Thanks, but right now I just need time to think. About my dad, about—everything."

"Plenty of time for that," he said with a wry smile. "It's not like we've got much else going on at the moment."

"Maybe I don't, but you do," I said, eager to change the subject. "The healers said you can start walking next week, right?"

"Yeah, they think so. It's still going slower than I'd like," he said. "But you only have one more week than I do."

"I'm going crazy," I moaned. "I feel so useless here—I wish we were training with everyone else."

Harry smirked. "It would be entertaining to actually witness Ron and Draco trying to work together."

"Merlin, please don't let them kill each other," I muttered. Harry laughed.

* * *

**A/N: **I know all my chapters have been really short as of late. I'm sorry. I'm kind of devoted to the idea of posting at least a chapter a day, but my days are getting busier, so my chapters are getting shorter...I'll try to make more time for writing earlier in the mornings so I can post more for you guys to read. Anyway, here's this little scene! Looking forward to your reviews :D


	41. Memory

**Chapter Forty-One: Memory**

I was even more restless than usual over the next two days. No one brought up the subject of my father coming here, but it was on everyone's minds. The morning of his visit, Seamus and Daphne left (hand in hand) to fetch him, and my heart started beating wildly. I was feeling excited and strangely insecure at the same time.

"He's your father," said Draco as we all waited impatiently. "What is there to be nervous about? Unless, of course, he's anything like _my_ father."

"No, he's like most normal fathers," I said with a sideways smile. "But as far as he's concerned, he's never met me before. In case I can't reverse the memory charm—I really want to make a good first impression."

"He'll love you," Ron said with a kind smile. "How could he not?"

"Maybe seeing you again will seem familiar," Ginny said hopefully. "I mean, I know it's been a while, but you can never tell with memory charms."

"You're forgetting Hermione's the one that cast the charm," Harry said after a moment, eyeing me apologetically. "Her charms are flawless."

I sighed. "Unfortunately, I think Harry's right. I spent a lot of time preparing that spell—I wanted to make sure they had no reason to come back to England, to come looking for me—"

We all fell into silence. Ron took my hand and squeezed it. I sent him a weak smile. He'd been nothing short of wonderful the past two days, even managing a friendly (albeit, forced) smile when Draco came in this morning. He was really doing everything he could to make up for how he'd been acting. It was such an incredible load off my shoulders not to feel like he hated me anymore, to be able to rely on him again.

Things had also improved with Draco. Since Ron agreed to work with him, he apparently didn't feel as awkward coming to see me. Each time the two of them were in the room together was less tense than the last. I wasn't exactly sure why this was, aside from Ron's commitment to control his temper, but I was grateful for it. It seemed like Ron was finally starting to see that despite how Draco acted in the past, and whatever his feelings were for me, he was still an asset in helping us take down Voldemort.

After what seemed like an eternity, we heard footsteps and voices echoing across the cave walls. I gripped Ron's hand tighter as I recognized my father's voice. When he finally stepped into view, I stopped breathing.

It was really him.

"Everyone, I'd like you to meet Wendell Wilkins," Seamus said, his gaze darting towards me. "He's going to help us take care of the security camera problem."

My father surveyed the room. He looked at Harry, then Ron, then me. I saw a glimmer of recognition in his eyes, and for a moment felt a dash of hope.

"I thought you three were supposed to be dead," he said in a surprised voice.

The hope I'd felt left. He hadn't recognized me as his daughter—I was just the girl who'd been tortured on the telly.

"Well, things aren't always as they seem, are they Mr. Wilkins?" Harry said with a slightly forced smile.

My father nodded. "That fact's become clearer and clearer to me the more I've learned about your world."

"So you think you know how to shut off the security cameras the Emperor has in place?" asked Ginny.

"Mr. Finnigan said you have a man on the inside, correct? As long as he can get me to the surveillance room, I should be able to shut off the whole system without a problem."

"What?" I blurted out without thinking. "You're not going anywhere near there!"

There was an awkward silence. My father looked slightly confused.

"Forgive me—Miss Granger, is it?"

I felt a lump in my throat. "Yes."

"The security system 'the Emperor' has in place is extremely complex, and without access to another one like it I have no way of sharing my knowledge with any of you. Now, I may just be a muggle, but I am the only one who can do this job. Your magic, though powerful, only works on technology if the witch or wizard casting a spell knows how that technology works. I can't cast a spell, but I can shut it down."

I bit my lip and awkward stared at my hands. After a minute, Ron spoke up.

"If you'd permit me, Mr. Wilkins, when the time comes I'd like to accompany you and our inside man. The Emperor may have special, magical protections on the room or the equipment."

My father nodded again. "That sounds like a good precaution to take."

Ron caught my eye and squeezed my hand again. I sent him a thankful smile.

"Now," my father said, "what exactly is the plan?"

Ginny, Ron, and Seamus started filling him in on what we knew about the layout and security of the Old Ministry. After a few minutes, George and Luna joined us, periodically adding their own comments. I listened to the conversation, but none of it was really registering. I couldn't stop staring at my father, wishing he would look back at me, recognize me as his daughter. I had a million questions for him, about what happened in Australia, why he was in England, where Mum was—

Before I knew it, we were breaking for lunch. George, Luna, Seamus and Daphne escorted my father out of the room. I felt a pain in my heart that I couldn't quite describe as he walked away, not looking back. I knew I would see him again later that afternoon, but he wasn't my father anymore. He was Wendell Wilkins, a childless dentist who'd somehow become an expert on security systems.

Ron sat down as he left and brushed the hair out of my face. "You doing all right?" he asked quietly.

Everyone was staring at me. I took a deep breath and nodded.

"I'm—fine. He looks like he's doing well."

Another lump caught in my throat. Ron pulled me into a strong hug. Over his shoulder I caught Draco's eye, and I read compassion in his expression.

"I'll get you some food," he said, then left the room. Ron remained where he was, doing his best to comfort me.

"I just want to run after him," I said after a few minutes. "Call after him, tell him I'm his daughter. I want him to hug me, and kiss my forehead, and call me 'Hermy.'" I laughed. "Merlin, I never thought I'd hear myself say that."

Ron sent me a sympathetic smile. "Hopefully reversing the memory charm will work."

I looked at the wand in my hands. "I wish I had my own wand," I murmured. "I mean, this one's fine for most things, but it's not the same."

"Harry and I are going through the same thing. I've had to deal with a second-rate wand for the past seven years. But maybe we'll find our wands in one of the vaults with a horcrux, who knows?"

"Maybe," I said. "He might have kept them as trophies."

"I'm sure he kept mine," Harry piped up. "It may have already been destroyed and in pieces, but the whole reason he went after the elder wand in the first place was because he couldn't beat me with his, because our wands were twins."

"And it would make sense for him to keep yours as well," said Ginny. "He'd have mine, too, if I hadn't managed to steal it back from the Death Eater who took it from me."

"Look," Ron said, "wherever your old wand is doesn't matter right now. You're Hermione Granger, and I have no doubt you can do this."

I sent him a small smile. He leaned down and kissed me as Draco returned. He seemed to hesitate, but not for very long.

"I brought some for you too, Weasley," he said, handing Ron a plate. "Potter, Weaslette—would you like me to grab you something?"

"No, I'll go," Ginny said as she stood. "You're going to eat too, right Malfoy?"

"I'm not very hungry right now, thanks."

As Ginny left the room, I caught Draco's eye and raised an eyebrow. "Weaslette?"

He shrugged. "I've got to differentiate between them somehow."

"How about 'Ron' and 'Ginny'?"

Both Draco and Ron scrunched up their faces in disgust. Harry and I laughed.

* * *

It wasn't long before everyone returned from lunch. My father didn't give me more than a passing glance. I sighed.

He talked to us for a few minutes about what to do in the event that he wasn't able to shut down the security system. Again, I wasn't really listening. Questions were running around my brain, just dying to be asked.

There was a slight pause in the conversation, and I couldn't hold it in any longer. "How did you learn so much about security? Seamus said you used to be a dentist."

"I was. Both my wife and I were dentists. We moved to Australia about—oh, what was it, eight years ago? We set up a practice, but it wasn't long before we were robbed. After that, I had the security in our building upgraded, and I found the whole system fascinating. So I guess you could say it started out as a hobby. When this whole war things started, though, I didn't really see a need to continue my practice and decided to devote my time to helping out on the security front."

"That's another thing that confuses me," I said, a frown on my face. "You were in Australia—how did you end up in London, mixed up in all of this?"

He eyed me for a moment. Everyone else in the room was silent, letting me ask my questions. I waited impatiently for his answer, hoping he would, in fact, answer me—my father had always been a very private person, and as far as he was concerned I was a stranger. He didn't have any reason to tell me anything.

"Let's just say it wasn't by choice," he said at length. "I was forced to come back to England for reasons I still don't entirely understand."

"What about your wife?" I blurted out.

"My wife?"

I bit my lip. "You said you owned a practice with her. Is she still in Australia, or—?"

His expression was unreadable. After staring at me for a few minutes, he turned towards Ginny.

"Now, is it just the one building that has a security system installed, or are there several?"

I stared at my hands. After a tense moment, Ginny answered his question, but I wasn't hearing anything she was saying. Someone gripped my hand and I looked up, expecting to see Ron. Instead, Draco stood next to me, an almost apologetic look on his face.

After a few more minutes, my father turned to leave, sending me another strange look before he did so. Just as he was about to leave the room, Ron jumped up and ran over to him.

"Mr. Wilkins, I was wondering if I could ask you a question," he stammered.

"About what, Mr. Weasley?"

As Ron searched for something to say, I pulled out my wand and pointed it at my father. My hand was shaking. Everyone watched in anticipation as I whispered the spell.

My father froze mid-sentence and turned to face me. I felt my heart jump as our eyes met, but he soon broke eye contact to stare at my wand pointed directly towards him.

"Is there a problem, Miss Granger?" he asked. He met my eyes again, staring at me as if I were an alien.

I felt as if I'd just been punched in the chest. Slowly, I lowered my wand and shook my head. Seeming a bit nervous, my father quickly left the room. Draco's grip on my hand tightened.

"It didn't work," I muttered. "It didn't work, and now he thinks I'm just a crazy witch who—"

I fell into sobs. In three strides, Ron was next to me, pushing Draco out of the way. I buried my face in his chest and cried.

* * *

**A/N: **Again, I can't believe all the unbelievable support I've been getting from you guys on this story! Looking forward to your reviews for this chapter!


	42. Feelings

**Chapter Forty-Two: Feelings**

Every time my father was in the room after that, I avoided his gaze and stayed silent. No doubt he'd found my behavior strange, to say the least, and the chances of him confiding anything in me at this point were astronomically slim. Everyone tried to keep my spirits up, but there was nothing they could say to change the fact that my loving father didn't know who I was, and he never would.

On top of that, I still didn't know what happened to my mother. After how he reacted to me asking about her, no one else was brave enough to mention her again.

After he'd been staying with us for four days, something finally happened to take my mind off my father: Harry started walking on his own again. He stumbled with his first few steps, but for the most part was walking normally. Everyone was so excited. I was, too, but seeing him up and about just made me even more restless.

I sighed as I stared at the ceiling. For the first time in weeks, I was alone. My physical therapy was done for the day, and Harry was in another room somewhere, practicing dueling with his new wand—he wasn't going to waste another moment sitting around. I mindlessly levitated things in the room—the books, Harry's bed, my bed—wishing I was practicing with him.

"It's awfully quiet in here without Potter around," came Draco's voice from the doorway.

I sent him a small smile and sat up. "Too quiet."

Draco entered the room, looking around. "I don't suppose you've grown attached to the place."

"This damp, smelly cave?" I laughed. "I can't wait to get out of here."

"Then why don't we?"

"Draco, I can't walk yet. Not according to the healers, anyway."

"Who said anything about walking?" he said with a mischievous grin. "I'll carry you out of here. There's no one around, we can just run off for a picnic or what have you—"

I bit my lip. "I don't know."

He sat at the foot of my bed. "Why not? It would be fun, and it might get your mind off other things."

I looked into his eyes. There was a part of me that wanted to say yes, to run off with him for the afternoon, but I knew I couldn't. I thought back to my many conversations with Ron, how I'd promised him I'd talk to Draco as soon as we could have the conversation privately. Well, here we were, alone for the first time in weeks—

And I didn't want to do it.

Draco's smirk faded as I remained silent. After staring at each other for a few minutes, he sighed and looked away.

"This is because of Weasley, isn't it?"

"Draco—"

"I know what you're going to say," he spat. "You're going to tell me that you love him, you don't feel the same way about me, blah, blah, blah." He was scowling. "But you know as well as I do that those are _his _words, not yours."

I stared at him, taken aback. "That's not true at all! I _do _love Ron, and whatever—feelings—I had towards you—"

"_Have_." He spun to face me, an almost frightening look on his face. "Can you honestly say you're not attracted to me?"

"At this moment, definitely not!"

"Have you forgotten how he treated you?" Draco stood and began pacing the room. "He was rude and selfish, constantly yelling at you—"

"Like you are right now?"

"I have been kind, and thoughtful, and gentle," Draco went on, ignoring me. "Every time _he _has come into this room, you've been miserable! Are you really going to tell me you're choosing that useless _git_ over me?"

"I already chose him!" I yelled. "A long time ago! None of this would even be an _issue_ if you hadn't—"

"If _you _hadn't kissed _me_!" he interrupted.

I tried to think of a response, but couldn't come up with anything. Draco stood a few feet from my bed, breathing heavily. Suddenly, he closed the distance between us and kissed me forcefully. I knew I should push him off, but inexplicably wrapped my arms around his neck instead. He ran his fingers through my hair and deepened the kiss, climbing onto the bed. My heart was racing.

At the sound of nearing footsteps, Draco practically jumped off the bed. I took deep breaths, trying to collect myself, as my father entered the room.

"Mr. Wilkins," I said, hoping I didn't sound too breathless. "Harry's not here."

"I know. I came to speak to you." He glanced at Draco. "Is this a bad time?"

"No, it's perfect," I said before Draco could respond. "Mr. Malfoy was just leaving."

Draco caught my eye. There was such a complicated mix of emotions in his expression that I couldn't even begin to describe them. After what felt like an eternity, he turned away and left the room. I let out an inward sigh as I returned my attention to my father.

"What was it you wanted to talk about?"

My father hesitated before sitting in a chair at the foot of my bed. "First, I wanted to apologize. I am a very private person, and I don't react—well—to people asking about my personal life. I realize that you were just trying to be friendly and get to know me, so I'm sorry if I've been—cold—towards you."

"That's perfectly all right," I said with a small smile. "It wasn't really my place to ask about your personal life, anyway."

"Well, there's no real reason for me to keep what happened to myself," he said with a sigh. "I guess I'm just wary of your kind in general."

There was an awkward moment of silence as he stared off into the distance. I took a deep breath.

"I know it's not my business," I said quietly, "but what did happen in Australia? What made you come back here?"

He considered me for a moment before speaking. "One Saturday morning, about a year and a half ago, my wife and I—her name was Monica—were planning on going camping, seeing as our office was closed Monday. Just before we walked out the door, our air conditioner broke, and Monica convinced me to have someone come out and look at it before we left for the weekend. He got there just as I left to pick up some takeout from our favorite place in town. When I got back, they were both gone, and there was a dark mark floating above our house."

My heart sank. "The dark mark?"

"I didn't know what it was at the time, of course," he said with a sideways glance towards me. "I called the cops. They probably would have committed me to a psych ward if my neighbors hadn't sworn up and down they saw the mark too.

"We searched for them for months with no luck. I'd all but closed my practice, focusing all of my energy on trying to find Monica. And then, one day, I turned on the telly and saw those bodies burning over parliament."

He paused. "I knew it was her. I can't really describe how or why, I just knew. So I sold everything and came to London."

There were tears in his eyes. "I keep asking myself, why? Why her? What could the Emperor possibly have wanted my wife, of all people, for?"

Something caught in my throat. I wanted to tell him the truth, tell him why Mum had died—but even if he believed me, it would accomplish nothing.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered.

He wiped his eyes and glanced at me again. "Your first name's Hermione, is it not? Like the queen in Shakespeare's _The Winter's Tale_?"

I nodded. "It was my mother's favorite Shakespeare play."

He sent me a pained smile. "It was Monica's too."

I bit my lip to keep myself from saying anything. My father sighed and stared into the distance again.

"I remember seeing that show at the Globe in London," he muttered, more to himself than me. "Monica and I went together, soon after we were married. It was a magnificent production. At the end of it, we decided that if we ever had a daughter, we would name her Hermione." His smile became more genuine as he looked at me. "It's a beautiful name."

I stared at him for a moment, at a loss for words.

"Thank you," I finally stammered.

He stood, sent me another small smile, and left the room. I stared at where he'd been, still speechless. A few minutes later, Harry returned, supported by Ginny (he'd apparently pushed himself too hard in dueling practice). When I didn't immediately respond to their greeting, they shared a concerned glance.

"Hermione, what's going on?" Gin asked as Harry sat on his bed. "We saw your dad leaving. What did you talk about?"

"He's remembering," I whispered.

"What?" Harry said.

"He remembered seeing _The Winter's Tale _at the Globe," I said, sitting up straighter. The shock was starting to pass, and excitement was taking its place.

"What are you talking about?" said Ginny, taking my hand.

I turned to face her, my eyes shining. "I erased that memory. Monica and Wendell Wilkins have never been to the Globe. But Lyle Granger and his six-month pregnant wife, Marlene, decided to name their daughter Hermione after seeing _The Winter's Tale _there in the summer of 1979."

My lips split into a huge grin as the full reality of what I'd just said hit me. Harry and Ginny's faces were lighting up as well.

"He's remembering me," I breathed.

* * *

**A/N: **Some of you guessed it! For those that didn't, I hope you're pleasantly surprised :) As for the aftermath of what just happened with Draco...we shall see :P Looking forward to your reviews!


	43. Break-ups

**Chapter Forty-Three: Break-ups**

Ron let out a joyous yell when I told him the news about my father and wrapped me in a tight hug. As he kissed me, I felt a rush of overwhelming guilt. I knew that this time I needed to tell him about what happened with Draco sooner than later, but I was frankly a little terrified of how he would react. Even if he could forgive me, I knew there was no way Draco would make it out of this one unscathed.

The next week passed by slowly. Every day I'd beg the healers to let me try to walk on my own, and every day they'd tell me I wasn't ready. I considered trying to get up and walk while they were out of the room, but someone else was usually around to keep me bedridden. It was torture, even more so now that Harry was free to walk around as he pleased. The healers were still monitoring him, but he seemed to be perfectly healthy. It really was a miracle—seven years in a coma and he was up and walking a month after waking up.

"That would never be possible in a non-magic hospital," my father said one day, shaking his head.

"One of the advantages of magic," I said with a smirk.

He sent me a slight smile. "Until I met all of you, I wasn't sure magic had any advantages—the only way I'd seen it used was for evil."

I just looked down at my food. Eventually, he'd remember everything—learning I was a witch, helping me study my textbooks, going to diagon alley—but for the moment, none of that really mattered.

'Mr. Wilkins' had started eating his lunch with me rather than out in the main room. When I casually asked him why, he thought about it for a minute before saying I reminded him of his wife. I was sure that was true, but I also suspected there was more to it than that. Without understanding why, he recognized me and felt a connection to me. Every conversation we had, I grew more and more confident he would remember everything, that I would get my father back.

That fact, however, made me extremely nervous about the ever-nearing battle we were planning. Ron assured me he was training extra hard, that he would make sure nothing happened to my father, but that didn't stop me from feeling anxious.

I was sitting in bed (as always), reading up on the items we believed were Voldemort's new horcruxes, when Ron walked into the room. I glanced up at him and smiled.

"How was training?" I asked. "The healers say I can _finally _try to walk tomorrow—hopefully I'll be joining you soon."

Ron stared at me, a blank expression on his face. My smile slowly turned into a frown.

"Ron, what's wrong?"

He took a deep breath, his eyes not leaving mine for a second. When he spoke, it was very softly.

"Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

He hesitated. "Did you—did Draco kiss you again?"

I caught my breath. He knew the answer almost immediately from my expression. He shut his eyes tight and clenched his fists.

"Listen to me," I said, already begging, "I told him I loved you, that he needed to back off—"

"And then put your arms around his neck when he kissed you?" Ron accused.

Again, he knew the answer before I said anything. Without another word, he turned and left the room. I didn't even call out to him—I knew it would do no good.

The pain and guilt I felt was almost unbearable. I buried my face in my hands and began to cry. After a while, I heard someone enter the room. Over my sobs, I could just make out their voice.

"Hermione—"

"You take one more step towards me, Malfoy, and I swear I'll hex you," I spat.

He let out a small, forced laugh. "'Malfoy,' huh? You haven't called me that for a while."

"Will you just _leave_?"

"Look," he sighed, "I came here to apologize."

"For kissing me, or for telling Ron about it?"

He approached my bed. I grabbed my wand and pointed it at him, stopping him dead in his tracks. Somewhere in the back of my brain it registered that he had a black eye—I didn't have to guess where that came from.

"Both," he said after a moment.

"I hope you're happy," I muttered. "I don't think there's any chance he'll forgive me this time, especially since I wasn't the one who told him about it."

He sighed again. "I promise I won't come any closer, can you just lower your wand?"

"I still haven't decided if I'm going to turn you into a ferret or not."

"Fine, do what you want," he said, a hint of anger in his tone. He took a deep breath, seemingly to calm himself, before he continued. "But I came here to tell you I'll back off."

"All it took was a black eye," I muttered.

He shook his head. "That doesn't have anything to do with it. You were right—this whole situation is my fault. I wanted you to be happy, and I thought I could make you happy, but instead I've made you miserable. If your heart is set on Weasley—I'll stop."

I lowered my wand just slightly, but not enough to make him relax. There were tears in my eyes, but I was trying desperately to keep them from falling in front of him.

"It's a little late for that gesture, Draco."

"I know." He sighed once more. "I screwed things up, and I'm sorry. If you think it would help, I can try to talk to Weasley—"

"That is possibly the worst idea you have ever had."

"Yeah, probably," he said with a forced, crooked smile. "But I do want to fix this."

"You can fix it by leaving me alone," I said, ignoring how much the words hurt as I said them. "I don't want to see you again, not unless I absolutely have to."

Pain flashed across his face. After a minute, he nodded. He turned away, pausing briefly just before his back was to me.

"Can you ever forgive me?" he asked quietly.

Something caught in my throat as I answered.

"I don't think so."

He looked as if I'd just hit him with a stunning spell. Without another word, he left the room. I dropped my wand and almost immediately burst into sobs again.

* * *

**A/N: **Blegh. Too much love triangle stuff. At least Hermione'll be able to walk around and be proactive about things soon :P I know it's a short chapter, but it's a chapter nonetheless (and a transition). I'll post more tomorrow! :)


	44. Steps

**Chapter Forty-Four: Steps**

"Hermione, are you sure you're all right?"

I sent Ginny a weak smile. "I'll be fine."

"You don't sound very convincing," said Harry.

My smile faltered, but I kept it on all the same. "Really, Harry, I'll be all right. Maybe not this second, maybe not today—" I sighed. "Objectively, I think this is the best thing that could have happened right now."

They both raised their eyebrows and exchanged a glance.

"What I mean by that is this whole messed-up business was—is—making it hard for me to focus," I explained. "Above all else, we need to get a foolproof plan in place to destroy those horcruxes. And I can't help come up with that plan if I'm constantly distracted by Ron and Draco."

"You really think things will be any better now?" Ginny said skeptically.

"I don't know," I admitted. "They could end up just as bad as ever. But I'm hoping—I'm praying—that they'll both just keep their distance, and all three of us can be a bit more proactive."

After a minute, Harry sighed and stood. "I'm going to go find Ron—try to talk some sense into him."

"Please don't," I said quickly. "I mean, you can talk to him, that's fine, but trust me—trying to get him to forgive me right now is the opposite of a good idea. Just—I don't know—let him rant about what a horrible person I am."

"Okay, I'm not going to do _that_," Harry said, frowning at me.

"Just don't try to be my advocate. We both know it won't do any good."

Harry eyed me for a minute before shaking his head. "He's my best friend, remember? I know when to back off—I won't get him riled up."

I sighed inwardly as he walked away and faced Ginny. "Does he not remember all their fights at Hogwarts?"

"He'll be fine," Ginny said reassuringly, though I knew she, too, was a little concerned about her brother's temper.

We sat in silence for a few minutes, waiting for the healers to arrive. I was more excited than ever to be able to walk again. Anything was better than sitting around here with nothing to do.

"Why did you do it, Herm?" Ginny asked suddenly.

I looked at her. "What do you mean?"

"Why did you kiss him in the first place?" she clarified. "And why did you kiss him back when he kissed you?"

I bit my lip and stared at my hands. I really didn't want to talk about this anymore. Ginny took one of my hands in hers and forced me to look at her.

"You can talk to me. You've always been able to talk to me about anything."

"This is a whole new—mess," I sighed. "I'm not sure I can talk to anyone about it without being judged."

"I'm not judging you," she said as she squeezed my hand. "I may not understand, but that's only because you won't _talk _tome."

Something in her tone made my lips quiver into a small smile. I hesitated for a few more moments, but we both knew I'd end up telling her everything.

"I'm not sure I entirely understand it myself," I said. "I mean, it's _Malfoy _of all people."

"So he must have done something very un-Malfoy-ish," Ginny offered.

I laughed. "More like a million things. First he agreed to risk everything by protecting Harry, then he rescued me from Azkaban, then he tried to comfort me when I thought everyone was dead—oh, and he _apologized _for calling me a mudblood."

She raised her eyebrows. "He_ what_?"

"He was there for me when I was all alone," I continued, talking more to myself now. "We didn't really talk much—we couldn't, obviously, and it's not really in his nature anyway—but he was there. He would hold my hand, put an arm around me, whenever things got difficult or awkward. He was like a silent rock I could lean on, and he didn't seem to mind."

I paused. "I hadn't had a single moment of happiness, hadn't had any human contact, for years. And all of the sudden he was there, with his obnoxious smirk and maddening secrecy—"

I cut myself off and fell into silence, staring off into the distance. It didn't make perfect sense, but it was the only answer I could come up with.

"And why did you kiss him back after that?" Ginny pressed.

Sighing, I looked at her again. "He's changed. Not entirely, obviously, but he's been—kind. And he's been trying to be a better person, look at things from our perspective. And he's been thoughtful, and sweet—"

I grunted, lay back in the bed, and stared at the ceiling. "I think I did it because I'm attracted to who he could be—who he's trying to be. But all those qualities—Ron already has them. I still can't explain why I didn't push him off right away the first time, why I just let him kiss me."

"Well," Ginny said, shifting her position on the bed, "I don't know about the first time, but there's definitely some truth in what Malfoy said about how Ron treated you when he first found out. He was a bloody son of a—"

"Ginny!"

"He was a git," she went on. "He pushed you away, which gave Malfoy the opportunity to show him up."

"You realize we're talking about your brother?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Who else could I possibly be talking about?"

I suppressed a slight laugh as the healers finally entered the room. When I saw them, I sat up quickly and swung my legs around the side of the bed.

"Can I walk now?"

They all chuckled, as did Ginny. Fiona, the healer who'd been put in charge of me, pulled out a vial and stepped forward.

"Drink this first, then we're going to examine your leg and make sure everything's still good to go."

"_Then _I can walk?"

"Once we clear you," she said with a laugh, "we'll help you stand, and we'll stay close by as you walk around the room. After circling the room a couple times, you'll sit down again—"

I groaned.

"—and we'll examine your leg again," she said with a sideways smile. "If everything's still in order after that, _then _you can walk around unsupervised, as long as you use caution."

I took the potion from her and drank it in one gulp. Waiting for them to finish 'examining' my leg was agonizing. Ginny laughed out loud at the look on my face.

"You're worse than Harry was!"

I stuck my tongue out at her just as the healers stepped back. Fiona smiled at me.

"All right, Hermione—ready to stand?"

Eagerly, I swung my legs over the side of the bed again. Fiona took my right arm, and Ginny took my left. Once they seemed satisfied I was stable, they let go. I was standing on my own.

"Okay," Fiona said. "Go ahead."

Suddenly, I was very nervous. On my feet, unsupported, for the first time in over a month, I realized just how weak my leg was. I was leaning slightly to the right, keeping almost all my weight on my good side.

I took a deep breath. Everyone waited patiently as I tentatively lifted my left leg and took a step. I stumbled, but managed to catch myself before Ginny and Fiona grabbed me. I took another step, then another, then another. With each step, my confidence grew. My leg hurt, and it was definitely in need of exercise, but I could use it.

I could _walk_!

* * *

**A/N:** _Finally_! :P I, like Hermione, am looking forward to some more action! I'm also looking forward to your reviews! :D


	45. Surprise

**Chapter Forty-Five: Surprise**

After a couple rounds of the room, I stumbled back to the bed. Fiona and the rest of the healers gave me one final look before clearing me, at the same time reminding me that they would still be checking in and that I needed to be careful.

"So what do you want to do, now that you can walk?" Ginny said, leaning forward.

"Get out of this room, for sure," I said with a sideways smile. "Maybe go to the other camp and see everyone? Harry hasn't been there yet, has he?"

Ginny jumped up suddenly. "We should find him! We should all go over there, tell them all he's alive!"

I laughed and gingerly stood. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

We headed out of the room, Ginny running ahead of me. My lips curved into a smile as I walked down the hall, away from the room that had been my prison for the last month. My leg ached with every step, but I wasn't about to show it—I could handle the pain, but everyone else would force me back to bed if they knew about it.

It was a good thing Ginny got there before I did—Harry was sitting on the opposite end of the main chamber, talking to Ron. I purposely hung back when I saw him, both because of my own feelings and out of respect for his.

When Ginny reached them, they both stood. Harry immediately turned to face her, and grinned when he saw me. Ron slowly turned as well. Our eyes met, and he managed a small smile.

"It's good to see you up and about," he said quietly.

"It's good to be up and about," I said.

After an awkward moment of silence, Ginny couldn't hold it in any longer. "Hermione and I were thinking we should go to the other camp—show them all that you're alive!"

Harry's grin widened. "That sounds like a great idea. Are you up for it, Herm?"

I nodded vigorously. "Let's get out of here."

Harry laughed. We decided that he should be under the invisibility cloak when we first got there, so the reveal would be more dramatic. We'd let everyone be excited to see me first, then Harry would reveal himself.

"I can't wait to see their faces!" Ginny squealed as we headed out of the cave. She and Harry were walking in front, and Ron and I were behind. Neither Ron nor I said a word while Harry and Ginny chatted.

As we walked out of the mouth of cave, I sped up, feeling very uncomfortable walking right next to Ron. As I did, my toe caught on a rock and I lost my balance. I let out a small cry as I started to fall. Suddenly, strong arms wrapped around me and pulled me back to my feet. I turned to find my face just inches away from Ron's, and felt my heartbeat quicken. I expected him to let go of me, even back away.

He didn't.

"Thank you," I said, forcing a small smile.

"Are you sure you're good to travel?" he said, a deep look of concern on his face. "Maybe you should stay here."

I shook my head. "I'm done sitting around."

"But if you can't walk—"

"I _can _walk, I'm just getting used to it again. I'll be fine, Ron, really."

He searched my face for a minute. His was still just inches from mine. Finally, he released me, but kept his arms outstretched momentarily, as if expecting me to topple over again. Trying to hide the blush on my cheeks, I walked ahead of him, ignoring the pleased looks on Harry and Ginny's faces.

After a couple more minutes, Harry put on the cloak. I felt him take my hand as Ginny took the other one. Ron apparated before us, sending me a quick look before disappearing. I closed my eyes as Ginny apparated with Harry and me. When I opened them again, I froze.

Bellatrix Lestrange stood in front of us, her wand pressed against Ron's throat. Ginny and I both reached for our wands, but one flick of hers and they were on the ground. I felt my heartbeat quicken, and tried to suppress the fear threatening to overcome me. All I could think about was the last time I'd seen her, writhing on the floor, her knife carving into my flesh—

"It's nice to see you again, Hermione," she cackled. "And the Weasleys as well. All we're missing for this little reunion is the boy-wonder himself."

I glanced at where Harry had been standing out of the corner of my eye, hoping she didn't notice.

"What are you going to do, Bellatrix?" I said, sounding much braver than I actually felt. "There's no way you can bring us all in, and I doubt the Emperor would be very happy with you if you killed us."

"Oh, I'm not going to kill you," she said, her voice sending chills down my spine.

Suddenly, she released Ron and pushed him toward us. I noticed with surprise that his wand was still in his hand. He raised it, and I saw Bellatrix's lips curve into a horrible smile.

"You're going to kill each other."

I realized a second too late what was happening. Ron pointed his wand at me and I flew backwards into a tree. Ginny scrambled for her wand and managed to grab it just in time, casting a protection charm over herself. Ron returned his attention to me—or rather, Bellatrix did. Ginny ran to help, but Bellatrix started attacking her herself.

"Ron, snap out of it!" I said, breathless. "I know you can fight it!"

I could see it in his eyes, the struggle. As he raised his wand again, his hand shook, but Bellatrix's spell was too powerful. He wasn't going to be strong enough—

"HARRY!" I yelled.

A curse shot out of nowhere, and Ron fell to the ground, unconscious. Harry whipped off the cloak, grabbed my wand, and tossed it to me. As she dueled Ginny, I saw Bellatrix's eyes grow wide.

"_Expelliarmus!_" said Ginny, catching the witch off-guard. Her wand went flying through the air, landing next to Ron. I stood, ignoring the new pain in my leg, and Harry and I both moved to stand next to Ginny. All three of us had our wands raised.

Ginny took a step forward. "How did you know we were going to be here?"

"That's not the question you should be asking, is it?" Bellatrix said, her evil grin reappearing. "You should be asking me if I know about your little cave half a mile away."

My heart dropped. Bellatrix's grin widened.

"Whoops. Well, I guess you know the answer to that question."

"What did you do?" I demanded.

"Me? _I _didn't do anything."

She cackled chillingly.

"But who ever said it was just me?"

"Ginny, Harry, wake up Ron and run to the cave," I said, trying to hide the panic in my voice. "I'll stay here."

"Hermione—"

"I'll only slow you down," I said, cutting Harry off. "You need to go _now_!"

There was no more arguing. Harry retrieved Bellatrix's wand and pocketed it while Ginny revived her brother. Once they were sure Ron was no longer under the curse, the three of them disappeared into the trees. Bellatrix's crooked smile didn't falter for one second.

"Run, run, run, as fast as you can!" she called after them mockingly.

"Shut it," I muttered, and waved my wand. Bellatrix's lips pressed together tightly. She glared at me and took a step forward.

"_Incarcerous!_"

Ropes shot out of the tip of my wand and tied her to the nearest tree. She struggled against them, but they only tightened with her every move. After a few minutes, she stopped struggling and just glared at me, screaming without making any noise. I searched her pockets, found her knife, and pocketed it.

I couldn't ignore the throbbing pain in my leg anymore and was forced to sit down. I stared into the trees in the direction Harry, Ron, and Ginny had run, still watching Bellatrix out of the corner of my eye. Images and flashbacks of the torture I'd endured by her hand clouded my vision. Even with her bound to that tree, wand-less, there was a part of me that was still terrified of her.

After what seemed like an eternity, I heard a rustling in the woods. I stood, ready to defend myself, but relaxed as Ginny walked into the clearing. At seeing the expression on her face, however, my muscles tensed up again.

"They're gone," she said. "All of them."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"Everything's where it should be—all our supplies, books, furniture, everything. There's no sign of a fight or even an ambush, but there's no one there."

"Then they must have gotten away," I said, trying to sound hopeful. "Has anyone—"

"The coins haven't changed, and no one left a note. They just—vanished."

I spun around and marched toward Bellatrix. With a flick of my wand, I lifted the silencing spell I'd placed on her. Before she had the chance to make a sound, I grabbed her by the hair and pressed my wand against her throat.

"_Where are they_?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Tell me or I swear, Bellatrix—"

"You'll what? Torture me? _Kill _me?" She laughed. "You don't have the stomach."

She leaned in closer to me and whispered. "That's why you'll always lose—because you're afraid to take control, to do what's _necessary_. And because you're so afraid, all your little friends—everyone who was in that cave—are going to die. One. By. One."

She smirked.

"And there's nothing you can do about it."

Something in me snapped. I banged her head against the tree, then stood back, wand outstretched.

"_CRUCIO!_"

* * *

**A/N: **Why, hello again! I apologize for not posting in so long. First, I was moving, and that was crazy. Then, I started having horrible stomach pains, went to the ER, and have been in and out of doctors offices ever since (and they still don't know what's wrong with me). Then, school started, and with it a new job. Then, I sprained my knee (which ironically is why I finally have time to write again - skipping classes for the day).

So I hope you can forgive me for taking so long to update. Also, I hope this chapter isn't terrible - I'm a little out of it, and was just trying to get something up for you guys.

Looking forward to your reviews!


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